IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


11.25 


ti|2£    |25 
2.2 


u 

lUteu 


12.0 

li 

U    11.6 


V 


71 


^ 


'/ 


PhotograiJiic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


4S 


23  W3ST  MAIN  STRUT 

WIBSTU.N.Y.  14StO 

(716)873-4503 


^V' 

^ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  IVIicroraprcductions  /  institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibiiographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


D 


D 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I     I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommag^e 


□   Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurte  et/ou  pellicula 

□   Cover  title  missing/ 
Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

□   Coloured  maps/ 
Cartes  gtegraphiques  en  couleur 

□    Coloured  inic  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

r~7|   Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


0 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
ReliA  avec  d'autres  documents 


FTI    Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 


along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  serrie  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 

distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intArieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajouttes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  itait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  At*  f  limAes. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  ie  meiileur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  AtA  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  dAtaiis 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sent  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mAthode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquto  ci-.dessous. 


I     I   Coloured  pages/ 


D 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagAes 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurAes  et/ou  peiliculAes 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxet 
Pages  dAcolortes,  tachetAes  ou  piquAes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  dAtachAes 

Showthrough> 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Quality  inAgaie  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materii 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplAmentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 


I — I  Pages  damaged/ 

|~~|  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

rrii  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I     I  Pages  detached/ 

rri  Showthrough/ 

I     I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I     I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 

r~n  Only  edition  available/ 


The( 
toth 


Y 

The  I 
poss 
of  th 
filmii 


Origi 

begii 

theli 

sion, 

othe 

first 

sion, 

or  ill 


The  I 
shall 
TINL 
whic 

IVIap 
diffe 
entir 
begii 
right 
requ 
metl 


?ages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  ref limed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuiilet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  AtA  filmtes  h  nouveau  de  fapon  A 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires: 


Irregular  pagination:  vi,  [iii]  •  vii,  [1]  -  251  p. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  rMuction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


26X 


30X 


X 


12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


Th«  copy  filmed  here  hae  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 


L'exemplaire  fllmA  fut  reprodult  grAce  A  la 
gAnArosltA  de: 


Scott  Library, 
York  University 

The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Scott  Library, 
York  University 

Les  images  suivantes  ont  4tA  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  rexemplaire  filmA,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimte  sont  filmte  en  commenpant 
par  la  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmte  en  commenpant  par  la 
premlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  ^^>  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED "),  or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END  "), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  y  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc. ,  peuvent  Atre 
filmte  it  des  taux  de  reduction  diff  Srents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  griind  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  f  limA  A  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n6cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


[    t. 

t 

3 

\      1    ■ 

*      t 

i      • 

4 

5 

1 

6 

W>w-,,,v  -f.-^-i-    ■ 


,,  :--:.r^^'^^::,rii*^^ 


K-.'-x^I '  ii/-*---  -  ;.rr.^i»«rso»i»»artiu:  .-.■.•:T 


:  .^fa>o«»»j«<^-  ■ 


,?fj;>/fri!Tj 


3^ 


fURED  GEOLOGIGALIY 


D.\v  )t  H-iiyi'- Irftf  "'to'iiw'^f^ii. 


(  V 


Jl.l 


A 


TRAVELS 


IN 


NORTH    AMERICA, 


IN  THE  YEARS  1841-2 ; 


WITH 


GEOLOGICAL  OBSERVATIONS 

THE   UNITED   STATES, 

CANADA,  AND  NOVA  SCOTIA. 


BY  CHARLES  LYELL,  ESQ.,  F.R.S. 

AUTHOB  OF  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  OEOLOOT. 


4 
b 


IN   TWO   VOLUMES. 

VOL.   I. 

NEW- YORK : 

WILEY  AND  PUTNAM,    101  BROADWAY. 

1845. 


■■■«■ 


I/'. 


:-^- 


;^^'ft^'itJ.t.VSf--"iV-- *;  *'-■-'-■".■ 


>4t-j..j:;^ 


I..:  :::r?^&^'~-''''-'^^^^!*^P^^ 


ji.^^V'^fl'.^ri-.; 


■'■■■  .  v!««T;..-.. 


L'iK^n 


fU'yjr,:'^ '"' 


BIRD5-EYZ  71EW  CF  TF"E  FAU.5  (^F  TslAGARA  ?^.  AD-JACE 


If 


v«       ^.    'v 


V 
.* 


*^.< 


Jl.l 


iJ^f^^rjajjvy^^^iiijM 


i.-yA'j'.:f  "^' 

NIAGARA  ^AD-JAC£ NT  COUNTFT.    COI/fREP   GEOLOGIGAUJ, 


'^Jj^y.oj; 


)x<  s  -Mivu  liiir'y1v-i,h.--u. 


tl 

h 
fa 
w 
fn 
ar 
ni 


TO 


GEORGE  TICKNOR,   ESQ,, 


OF  BOSTON,  MASSACHUSETTS. 


My  dear  Mr.  Ticknor, 

I  am  glad  to  have  your  permission  to  dedicate 
these  volumes  to  you,  in  remembrance  of  the  many 
happy  days  spent  in  your  society,  and  in  that  of  your 
family  and  literary  friends  at  Boston ;  a  remembrance 
which  would  be  without  alloy,  were  it  not  for  my 
frequent  regrets  that  the  broad  Atlantic  should  sep- 
arate so  many  congenial  souls  whom  we  b( .  .  of  us 
number  among  our  friends  in  Europe  and  Amtyi^a. 
Believe  me, 

With  feelings  of  great  regard, 
Ever  faithfully  yours, 

Charles  Lyell. 
London,  June  13, 1845. 


PREFACE. 


The  reader  is  reminded  thnt  the  general  map  of  the  geology 
of  the  United  States  and  Canada  forms  the  frontispiece  of  the 
second  volume,  and  that  the  line  of  my  route  is  traced  upon  it 
in  the  manner  described  in  the  explanation  of  the  map  at  Vol 
II.  p.  238 

As  the  present  work  embraces  a  great  variety  of  subjects  to 
which  my  thoughts  were  turned  during  my  travels  in  North 
America,  I  have  endeavoured  to  confine  myself  as  far  as  possi- 
ble to  the  communication  of  such  scicnitific  matter  os  I  thought 
might  be  of  interest  to  the  general  reader.  For  a  more  detailed 
account  of  my  geological  observations  alluded  to  in  the  course 
of  these  volumes,  I  must  refer  to  the  following  published  papers 
and  abstracts  of  memoirs  read  to  the  Geological  Society  of  Lon- 
don. 

1.  Letter  to  Dr.  Fitton  on  the  Blossberg  Coal  District  and 

Stigmaria :  Proceedings  of  the  Geological  Society,  vol. 
iii.  p.  554.  1841. 

2.  Recession  of  the  Falls  of  Niagara :  Ibid.  vol.  iii.  p.  595. 

1842.     Resumed,  vol.  iv.  p.  19.  1843. 

3.  Tertiary  Formations  in  Virginia  and  other  parts  of  the 

United  States:  Ibid.  vol.  iii.  p.  735.  1842. 

4.  Fossil  Foot-Prints  of  Birds  and  Impressions  of  Rain-drops 

in  Connecticut  Valley.     Ibid.  vol.  iii.  p.  793.  1842. 

5.  Tertiary  Strata  of  Martha's  Vineyard  in  Massachusetts : 
Ibi</  vol.  iv.  p.  31.  1843. 

6.  On  the  Geological  Position  of  the  Mastodon  giganteus, 

and  other  Remains  at  Big  Bone  Lick,  Kentucky,  and 
other  Locahties  in  the  United  States.  Ibid.  vol.  iv.  p. 
36.  1843. 

1* 


Tl  PREFACE. 

7.  On  upright  Fnm\  TrrcH  found  in  the  Coal  Strata  of  Ciim- 
bcrlund,  Nova  Scotiu :  SiUiman's  Journal,  vol.  xlv.  No. 
2.  p.  353.  1843. 

8.  Coul  Fonnutions,  Oypsiim,  and   Marino  Limestones  of 

Nova  Scotia :  JLiil.  p.  35G. 

9.  Bed  of  Plumbago  and  Anthracite  in  Mica-sehist,  near  Wor- 
cester, Massachusetts,  with  Appendix  (M)ntaining  Analyses 
by  Dr.  Percy :  Quarterly  Journ.  of  Oeol.  Soc.  No.  2.  p. 
41G.     May,  1845. 

10.  Cretaceous  Strata  of  New  Jersey,  with  Appendix,  on  the 
Fossil  Corals  of  the  same,  by  Mr.  Lonsdale :  Ibid.  No. 
1.  p.  301.     Feb.  1845. 

11.  Miocene  Formations  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina,  &c., 
with  Appendix,  on  Fossil  Corals,  by  Mr.  Lonsdale  :  read 
to  the  Geol.  Soc.,  March,  1845.  Preparing  for  publica- 
tion. Ibid.  No.  4. 

12.  On  the  White  Limestone  of  South  Carolina  and  Georgia, 
and  the  Eocene  Strata  of  other  parts  of  the  U.  S.,  with 
Ajjpendix,  on  the  Corals,  by  Mr.  Lonsdale  :  read  to  the 
Geol.  Soc,  March,  1845.  Preparing  for  publication.  Ibid. 
No.  4. 

Abstracts  of  most  of  these  papers  have  also  appeared  in  Sil- 
liman's  "  American  Journal  of  Science  and  Arts,"  for  the  cor- 
responding years. 

London,  June  14th,  1845. 

For  the  Description  of  the  Plates  and  Maps,  see  Vol.  II.  p.  198. 


CONTENTS   OF   VOLUME    I. 


CHAPTER  I. 


PAOI 


Voyage.— Harbour  of  Halifax. — Excursions  near  Boston.— Dif- 
ference of  Plants  from  European  Species,  and  Correspon- 
dence of  Marine  Shells.— Resemblance  of  Drift,  Erratics, 
and  Furrowed  Rocks,  to  those  of  Sweden. — Springfield. — 
New  Haven.— Scenery  of  the  Hudson. — Albany.— Geologi- 
cal Surveys.- Mohawk  Valley.— Ancient  or  Silurian  Forma- 
tions.—Prosperity  and  rapid  Progress  of  the  People.— 
Lake  Ontario. — Tortoises.- Fossil  Remains  of  Mastodon 


CHAPTER  II. 

Distant  and  near  View  of  the  Falls  of  Niagara. — Whether 
the  Falls  have  receded  from  Qucenston  to  their  present 
Site.— Geographical  Features  of  the  Region.— Course  of 
the  River  above  and  below  the  Falls. — Recent  Proofs  of 
Erosion.— Historical  Data  in  the  Works  of  Hennepin  and 
Kalm. — Geological  Evidence  derived  from  Fluviatile  Strata 
or  Remnants  of  an  old  River-bed  in  Goat-Island  and  else- 
where.—Difficulty  of  computing  the  Rate  of  the  Retrograde 
Movement.— Varying  Hardness  and  Thickness  of  the  Rocks 
undermined.— Future  Recession.— Age  of  the  Drift  and  Lime- 
stone Escarpments.— Successive  changes  which  preceded 
and  accompanied  the  origin  of  the  Falls.— Reflections  on  the 
Lapse  of  past  Time 

CHAPTER  HI. 
Tour  from  the  Niagara  to  the  Northern  Frontier  of  Pennsyl- 
vania.— Ancient  Gypsiferous    Formation   of   New   York. — 
Fossil  Mastodon  at  Geneseo.— Scenery. — Sudden  Growth  of 
New  Towns, — Coal  of  Dlossberg,  and  resemblance  to  British 


22 


XV 


CONTENTS. 


«AOI 


ai: 


;l. 


Coal-Measures.—Stigmaria.— Humming  Birds. — Nomenc'. » - 
ture  of  Places.— Helderberg  Mountains  and  Fossils. — Re- 
fractory Tenants. — Travelling  in  the  States. — Politeness 
of  Women. — Canal  Boat. — Domestic  Service. — Progress  of 
Civilisation.— Philadelphia.— Fire-engines 44 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Excursion  to  New  Jersey.— Cretaceous  Rocks  compared  to 
European. — General  Analogy  of  Fossils,  and  Distinctness  of 
Species. — Tour  to  the  Anthracite  Region  of  the  AUeghanies 
in  Pennsylvania. — Long  parallel  Ridges  and  Valleys  of  these 
Mountains. — Pottsville. — Absence  of  Smoke. — Fossil  Plants 
same  as  in  Bituminous  Coal. — Stigmariae. — Great  Thickness 
of  Strata. — Origin  of  Anthracite. — Vast  Area  of  the  Appala- 
chian Coal-Field. — Progressive  Debituminization  of  coal 
from  West  to  East.— General  Remarks  on  the  different 
Groups  of  Rocks  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Mississippi. — 
Law  of  Structure  of  the  Appalachian  chain  discovered  by 
the  Professors  Rogers.— Increased  Folding  and  Dislocation 
of  Strata  on  the  South-eastern  flank  of  the  Appalachlans.-=- 
Theory  of  the  Origin  of  this  Mountain  chain 62 

CHAPTER  V. 

Wooded  Ridges  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains. — German  Patois 
in  Pennsylvania. — Lehigh  Summit  Mine.— Effects  of  Ice 
during  a  Flood  in  the  Delaware. — Election  of  a  Governor 
at  Trenton  and  at  Philadelphia. — Journey  to  Boston. — 
Autumnal  Tints  of  the  Foliage.— Boston  the  Seat  of  Com- 
merce, of  Government,  and  of  a  University. — Lectures  at  the 
Lowell  Institute. — Influence  of  Oral  Instruction  in  Litera- 
ture and  Science. — Fees  of  Public  Lecturers. — Education 
Funds  sunk  in  costly  Buildings. — Advantages  of  anti-build- 
ing clauses  —Blind  Asylum. — Lowell  Factory. — National 
Schools. — Equality  of  Sects. — Society  in  Boston 81 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Fall  of  Snow  and  Sleigh-driving  at  Boston. — Journey  to  New 
Haven. — Ichthyolites  of  Durham,  Connecticut. — Age  of 
Red  Sandstone. — Income  of  Farmers. — Baltimore. — Wash- 
ington.— National  Museum. — Natural  Impediments  to  the 
Growth  of  Washington. — Why  chosen  for  the  Capital. — 
Richmond,  Virginia. — Effects  of  Slave  Labour. — Low  Region 


CONTENTS. 


>AOI 


V 

fAOB 


;s9 
of 


44 


to 
.of 

m 

lies 

in 

lese 
ants 

.  1 

ness 
)ala- 
coal 
;rent 

pi.- 
d  by 
ation 

ins.-^ 

1 

62 


atois 
if  Ice 
ernor 
;on. — 
Com- 
lat  the 
litera- 
Ication 
luild- 
itional 


81 


New 
sje    of 

/^ash- 
10  the 
lital.— 

legion 


on  the  Atlantic  Border,  occupied  by  Tertiary  Strata.— In 
fusorial  Bed  at  Richmond.— Miocene  Shells  and  Corals  in 
the  Cliifs  of  the  James  River  compared  with  Fossils  of  the 
European  Crag  and  Faluns. — Analogy  of  Forms  and  Differ- 
ence of  Species. — Proportion  of  Species.— Commencement 
of  the  present  Geographical  Distribution  of  MoUusca 99 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Pine  Barrens  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina. — Railway  Train 
stopped  by  Snow  and  Ice. — The  great  Dismal  Swamp. — 
Soil  formed  entirely  of  Vegetable  Matter.— Rises  higher  than 
the  contiguous  firm  Land.— Buried  Timber.— Lake  in  the 
Middle. — The  Origin  of  Coal  illustrated  by  the  Great  Dis- 
mal.— Objections  to  the  Theory  of  an  ancient  Atmosphere 
highly  charged  with  Carbonic  Acid 112 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Tour  to  Charleston,  South  Carolina.— Facilities  of  Locomo- 
tion.— Augusta. — Voyage  down  the  Savannah  River. — Shell 
Bluff. — Slave  Labour. — Fever  and  Ague. — Millhaven. — Pine 
Forests  of  Georgia. — Alligators  and  Land  Tortoises. — Warmth 
of  Climate  in  January. — Tertiary  Strata  on  the  Savannah.— 
Fossil  Remains  of  Mastodon  and  Mylodon  near  Savannah.^ 
Passports  required  of  Slaves. — Cheerfulness  of  the  Negroes.    122 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Return  to  Charleston. — Fossil  Human  Skeleton.— Geographical 
Distribution  of  Quadrupeds  in  North  America. — Severe 
Frost  in  1835  in  South  Carolina. — White  Limestone  of  the 
Cooper  River  and  Santee  Canal. — Referred  to  'ic  Eocene 
Period,  not  intermediate  between  Tertiary  and  Chalk. — 
Lime-sinks. — Species  of  Shells  common  to  Eocene  Strata  in 
America  and  Europe. — Causes  of  the  increased  Insalubrity 
of  the  Low  Region  of  South  Carolina.— Condition  of  the 
Slave  Population. — Cheerfulness  of  the  Negroes,  their 
Vanity. — State  of  Animal  Existence —Invalidity  of  Mar- 
riages.— The  coloured  Population  multiply  faster  than  the 
Whites. — Effect  of  the  Interference  of  Abolitionists. — Law 
against  Education. — Gradual  Emancipation  equally  desirable 
for  the  Whites  and  the  Coloured  Race 136 


i 


f 


I' 


I' 


VI 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  X. 


pxaE. 


Wilmington,  North  Carolina. — Mount  Vernon. — Return  to 
Philadelphia. — Reception  of  Mr.  Dickens. — Museum  and 
Fossil  Human  Bones. — Penitentiary.— Churches. — Religious 
Excitement. — Coloured  People  of  Fortune. — Obstacles  to 
their  obtaining  Political  and  Social  Equality.— No  natural 
Antipathy  between  the  Races. — Negro  Reservations 150 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Philadelphia. — Financial  Crisis. — Payment  of  State  Dividends 
suspended. — General  Distress  and  Private  Losses  of  the 
Americans. — Debt  of  Pennsylvania. — Public  Works. — Direct 
Taxes. — Deficient  Revenue. — Bad  Faith  and  Confiscations. — 
Irresponsible  Executive. — Loan  Refused  by  European  Capi- 
talists in  1842. — Good  Faith  of  Congress  during  the  War  in 
1S12-14. — Effects  of  Universal  Sufi'rage.— Fraudulent  Vot- 
ing.— Aliens. — Solvency  and  Good  Faith  of  the  Majority  of 
the  States. — Confidence  of  American  Capitalists. — Reform 
of  the  Electoral  Body. — General  Progress  of  Society,  and 
Prospects  of  the  Republic 171 

CHAPTER  XIL 

New  York  City. — Geology.— Distribution  of  Erratic  Rocks  in 
Long  Island. — Residence' in  New  York. — Effects  on  Society 
of  increased  Intercourse  of  distant  States. — Separation  of  the 
Capital  and  Metropolis. — Climate. — Geology  of  tlie  Taconic 
Mountains. — Stratum  of  Pliunbago  and  Anthracite  in  the 
Mica  Schist  of  Worcester  — Theory  of  its  Origin. — Lectures 
for  the  Working  Classes. — Fossil  Foot-Prints  of  Birds  in 
Red  Sandstone. — Mount  Holyoke. — Visit  to  the  Island  of 
Martha's  Vineyard. — Fossil  Walrus. — Indias 189 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Meeting  of  Association  of  American  Geologists  at  Boston. — 
Popular  Libraries  in  New  England. — Large  Sale  of  Literary 
W^orks  in  the  United  States. — American  Universities. — 
Harvard  College,  near  Boston. — English  Universities. — Pecu- 
liarities of  their  System. — Historical  Sketch  of  the  Causes 
of  the  Peculiarities  not  of  Medieval  Origin. — Collegiate 
Corporations.— Their  altered  Relations  to  the  English  Uni- 
versities after  the  Reformation. — Constitution  given  to 
Oxford  by  Leicester  and  Laud.— System  of  Public  Teaching, 


CONTENTS. 


VH 


how  superseded  by  the  Collegiate.— Effects  of  the  Change. — 
Oxford  Examination  Statute  of  1800.— Its  subsequent  Modi- 
fication and  Results. — Rise  of  Private  Tutors  at  Oxford  and 
Cambridge, — Consequences  of  this  Innovation. — Struggle  at 
Oxford  in  1839  to  restore  the  Professional  System. — Causes 
of  its  Rejection. — Tractarianism. — Supremacy  of  Ecclesias- 
tics.— Youthful  Examiners. — Cambridge,  advocacy  of  the 
System  followed  there. — Influence  of  the  English  Academi- 
cal Plan  on  the  Cultivation  of  the  Physical  Sciences,  and 
all  Branches  of  Progressive  Knowledge. — Remedies  and 
Reforms 208 


JOURNAL 


OF   A 


TOUR    IN    NORTH    AMERICA, 


IN  1841—2. 


: 


CHAPTER  I. 

Voyage. — Harbour  of  Halifax. — Excursions  near  Boston. — Differ- 
ence of  Plants  from  European  Species,  and  Correspondence  of 
Marine  Shells. — Resemblance  of  Drift,  Erratics,  and  furrowed 
Rocks,  to  those  of  Sweden. — Springfield. — New  Haven. — Scenery 
of  the  Hudson. — Albany. — Geological  Surveys. — Mohawk  Valley. — 
Ancient  or  Silurian  Formations. — Prosperity  and  rapid  Progress 
of  the  People. — Lake  Ontario. — Tortoises. — Fossil  Remains  of 
Mastadon. 

July  20,  1841. — Sailed  from  Liverpool  for  Boston, 
U.  S.,  in  the  steam-ship  Acadia,  which  held  her  course 
as  straight  as  an  arrow  from  Cape  Clear  in  Ireland  to 
Halifax  in  Nova  Scotia,  making  between  220  and  280 
miles  per  day. 

After  the  monotony  of  a  week  spent  on  the  open 
sea,  we  were  amused  when  we  came  near  the  great 
banks  which  extend  from  the  southern  point  of  New- 
foundland, by  the  rapid  passage  of  the  steamer  through 
alternate  belts  of  stationary  fog  and  clear  spaces 
warmed  and  lighted  up  with  bright  sunshine.  Look- 
ing at  the  dense  fog  from   the  intermediate  sumiy 


!    h 


t: 


I 


HARBOUR    OF    HALIFAX. 


Chap.  i. 


regions,  we  could  hardly  be  [)ersuadcd  that  we  were 
not  beholding  laud,  so  distinct  and  well-defined  was  its 
outline,  and  such  the  varieties  of  light  and  shade,  that 
some  of  our  Canadian  fellovv'-passcngers  compared  it  to 
the  ))atches  of  cleared  and  uncleared  country  on  the 
north  shore  of  the  iSt.  Lawrence.  These  fogs  are 
caused  by  the  meeting,  over  the  great  banks,  of  the 
warju  waters  of  the  gulf  stream  llowing  from  the  south, 
and  colder  currents,  often  charged  with  floating  ice, 
from  tlic  north,  by  which  very  opposite  states  in  the 
relative  temperature  of  the  sea  and  atmosphere  are  pro- 
duced in  spaces  closely  contiguous.  In  places  where 
the  sea  is  warmer  than  the  air,  fogs  are  generated. 

When  the  eye  has  been  accustomed  for  many  days 
to  the  deep  blue  of  the  central  Atlantic,  the  greener 
tint  of  tlic  sea  over  tJic  banks  is  refreshing.  We  were 
within  150  miles  of  the  southern  point  of  Newfound- 
land when  we  crossed  these  banks,  over  v/hich  the 
shallowest  water  is  said  to  be  about  thirty-fiv^e  fathoms 
deep.  The  bottom  consists  of  fine  sand,  which  must 
be  often  ploughed  up  b}'  icebergs,  for  several  of  them 
were  seen  aground  here  l)y  some  of  our  passengers  on 
the  3ist  of  July  last.  The  captam  tells  us  that  the 
worst  months  for  crossing  the  Atlantic  to  and  from 
Halifax  are  i'\:l>ruary  and  Miuch,  and  the  ino^t  agree- 
able ones,  July,  August,  and  September.  The  nearer 
we  approached  tiie  iVmerican  coast,  the  more  beautiful 
and  brilliant  were  the  sunsets.  We  sometimes  com- 
pared the  changing  hues  of  the  clouds  and  sky  to  the 
blue  and  red  colours  in  a  pigeon's  neck. 

July  31. — On  the  eleventh  day  of  our  voyage  we 
sailed  directly  into  the  harbour  of  Halifax,  which  by  its 
low  hills  of  granite  and  slate,  covered  with  birch  and 


Chap,  i- 


Chap.  i. 


ARRIVAL    AT    BOSTON. 


we  were 
ed  was  ila 
hade,  that 
pared  it  to 
try  on  the 
}  fogs  are 
iks,  of  tlie 
I  the  south, 
oathig  ice, 
ites  in  the 
jre  arc  pvo- 
aces  where 
le  rated, 
many  days 
the  greener 
We  were 
Newfound- 
v.hich  the 
five  fathoms 
which  must 
:ral  of  thorn 
isscngers  on 
VIS  that  the 
.0  and  from 
inoit  agrec- 
The  nearer 
ore  beautiful 
letimes  com- 
d  sky  to  the 

voyage  we 
which  by  its 
h  birch  and 


5 


i 


spruce  fir,  reminded  me  more  of  a  Norwegian  fiord, 
such  as  that  of  Cliristiania,  than  any  other  place  I  had 
seen.  I  landed  here  for  six  hours,  with  my  wife,  du- 
ring which  we  had  time  to  drive  about  the  town,  and 
see  the  museum,  where  I  was  sliown  a  large  fo;?sil  tree 
filled  with  sandstone,  recently  sent  from  strata  contain- 
ing coal  in  the  interior.  I  resolved  to  examine  these 
before  returning  to  England,  as  they  appeared,  by  the 
description  given  us,  to  afford  the  finest  examples  yet 
known  in  the  world  of  petrified  trees  occurring  in  their 
natural  or  erect  position. 

Letters,  which  we  had  written  on  the  voyage,  being 
now  committed  to  the  post-oflSce  at  Halifax,  were  taken 
up  next  day  by  the  Caledonia  steam-ship  for  England, 
and  in  less  than  a  month  from  the  time  of  our  quitting 
London,  our  friends  in  remote  parts  of  Great  Britain 
(in  Scotland  and  in  Devonshire)  were  reading  an 
account  of  the  harbour  of  Halifax,  of  the  Micmac 
Indians  with  their  Esquimaux  features,  paddling  about 
in  canoes  of  birch  bark,  and  other  novelties  seen  on  the 
shores  of  the  New  World.  It  required  the  aid  of  the 
recently  established  railroads  at  home,  as  well  as  the 
Atlantic  steam-packets,  to  render  such  rapid  correspond- 
ence possible. 

August  2. — A  run  of  about  thirty  hours  carried  us 
to  Boston,  which  we  reached  in  twelve  and  a  half  days 
after  leaving  Liverpool.  The  heat  here  is  intense,  the 
harbour  and  city  beautiful,  the  air  clear  and  entirely 
free  from  smoke,  so  that  the  shipping  may  be  seen  far 
off,  at  the  end  of  many  of  the  streets.  The  Tremont 
Hotel  merits  its  reputation  as  one  of  the  best  in  the 
world.  Recollecting  the  contrast  of  every  thing  French 
when  1  first  crossed  the  straits  of  Dover,  I  am  aston- 


r 


EXCURSIONS    NEAR    BOSTON. 


Chap.  i. 


ished,  after  having  traversed  the  wide  ocean,  at  the  re- 
eemblancc  of  every  thing  I  sec  and  hear  to  things 
familiar  at  liome.  It  has  so  often  happened  to  me  in 
our  own  island,  without  travelling  into  those  parts  of 
Wales,  Scotland,  or  Ireland,  where  they  talk  a  perfectly 
distinct  language,  to  encounter  provincial  dialects  which 
it  is  difficult  to  comprehend,  that  I  wonder  at  finding 
the  people  here  so  very  English.  If  the  metropolis  of 
New  England  be  a  type  of  a  large  part  of  the  United 
States,  the  industry  of  Sam  Slick,  and  other  writers,  in 
collecting  together  so  many  diverting  Americanisms 
and  so  much  original  slang,  is  truly  great,  or  their 
inventive  powers  still  greater. 

I  made  excursions  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Boston, 
through  Roxbury,  Cambridge,  and  other  places,  with  a 
good  botanist,  to  whom  1  had  brought  letters  of  intro- 
duction. Although  this  is  not  the  best  season  for  wild 
flowers,  the  entire  distinctness  of  the  trees,  shrubs,  and 
plants,  from  those  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic, 
affords  a  constant  charm  to  the  European  traveller. 
We  admired  the  drooping  American  elm,  a  picturesque 
tree  ;  and  saw  several  kinds  of  sumach,  oaks  with 
deeply  indented  leaves,  dwarf  birches,  and  several  wild 
roses.  Large  commons  without  heaths  reminded  me 
of  the  singular  fact  that  no  species  of  heath  is  indige- 
nous on  the  American  continent.  We  missed  also  the 
small  "crimson-tipped"  daisy  on  the  green  la^ras,  and 
were  told  that  they  have  been  often  cultivated  with 
care,  but  are  found  to  wither  when  exposed  to  the  dry 
air  and  bright  sun  of  this  climate.  When  weeds  so 
common  with  us  cannot  be  reared  here,  we  cease  to 
wonder  at  the  dissimilarity  of  the  native  flora  of  the 
New  World,     Ye  whenever  the  aboriginal  forests  are 


;,! 


Chap.  i. 


MARINE    SHELLS. 


5 


cleared,  we  see  orchards,  jrarclens,  and  arable  lands, 
filled  with  tlio  same  fruit  trees,  the  same  grain  and 
vc<^('tal)les,  as  in  Europe,  so  bountifully  has  Nature 
provided  that  the  plants  most  useful  to  man  should  be 
capable,  like  himself,  of  hecominsf  cosmojx)lites. 

Aus^.  5. — Went  by  railway  to  deliver  letters  and  pay 
some  visits  at  Nahant,  situated  on  a  promontory  of 
the  coast,  about  ten  hiiles  N.E.  of  Boston,  where  I 
examined  the  rocks  of  hornblende  and  syenite,  trav- 
ersed by  veins  of  greenstone  and  basalt  which  often 
j^  intersect  each  other.  The  surface  of  the  rocks,  wher- 
ever the  incumbent  gravel  or  drift  has  been  recently 
removed,  is  polished,  furrowed,  and  striated,  as  in  the 
north  of  Europe,  especially  in  Sweden,  or  in  Switzer- 
land, near  the  great  glaciers. 

On  the  beach  or  bar  of  sand  and  shingle,  which 
unites  the  peninsula  with  the  3nain  land,  I  collected 
many  recent  shells,  and  was  immediately  struck  with 
the  agreement  of  several  of  the  most  abundant  species 
with  our  ordinary  British  Uttoral  shells.  Among  them 
were  Purpura  lapilliis,  Turbo  {Littorina)  j'udls, 
Mytilus  edulis,  Modiola  papuana,  Mya  arcnaria, 
besides  others  which  were  evidently  geographical  rep- 
resentatives of  our  common  species ;  such  as  Nassa 
trivittata,  allied  to  our  N.  reticulata,  Turbo  palliatus 
Say,  allied  to,  if  not  the  same  as,  our  common  Turbo 
neritoides,  (fcc.  I  afterwards  added  largely  to  the  list 
of  corresponding  species  and  forms,  and  Dr.  Gould  of 
Boston  showed  me  his  collection  of  the  marine  shells 
of  Massachusetts  and  the  adjoining  ocean,  and  gave 
me  a  list  of  70  out  of  197  species  which  he  regarded  as 
identical  with  shells  from  Europe.  After  comparing 
these  on  my  return,  with  the  aid  of  several  able  con- 

1* 


■r 


6 


RESEMBLAiN'CL    OF    UKIl'T    ROCKS         CiiAr.  I. 


cholo;("wtH,  1  am  convincod  tliat  tlio  groafcr  ])art  of  lliese 
itlciitilicatioiis  arc  corn.'ct ;  and,  in  tlio  place  of  somo 
considered  an  doublAd,  there  are  others  not  enumera- 
ted in  Dr.  Gould's  catalo«!;ue,  a\  hich  may  he  substituted, 
so  as  to  establish  a  re-iult  lor  A\iiich  H'wi^fologisls  Avero 
prepared,  viz.  that  one  third,  or  about  IJ5  p«'r  cent,  of 
the  marine  shells  of  this  part  of  America  are  the  same 
as  those  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Atlantic  ;  a  larj^e 
part  of  the  rcniainder  consisting  of  geographical  rejnc- 
eentatives,  and  a  fraction  only  of  the  whole  allbrding 
characteristic  or  peculiar  forms.  I  shall  have  many 
opportunities  of  pointing  out  the  geological  bearing  of 
this  curious,  and  to  me  very  unexpected,  fact. 

Several  excavations  made  for  railways  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Boston,  through  mounds  of  stratified  and 
unstratified  gravel  and  sand,  and  also  through  rock, 
enabled  me  to  recognise  the  exact  resemblance  of  this 
part  of  New  England  to  the  less  elevated  regions  of 
Norway  and  Sweden,  where  granitic  rocks  are  strewed 
over  irregularly  with  sand  and  blocks  of  stone,  forming 
a  gently  undulating  country  with  numerous  ponds  and 
small  lakes.  Indeed,  had  I  not  been  constantly  re- 
minded that  I  was  in  America,  by  the  distinctness  of 
the  plants,  and  the  birds  Hying  about  in  the  woods,  the 
geological  phenomena  woidd  have  led  me  to  suppose 
myself  in  Scotland,  or  some  other  part  of  Northern 
Europe.  These  heaps  of  sand  and  pebbles  are  en- 
tirely devoid  of  shells  or  organic  remains,  and  occasion- 
ally huge  rounded  blocks,  brought  from  a  great  distance, 
rest  upon  them,  or  are  buried  in  them.  The  heaps  are 
mainly  composed,  however,  of  the  materials  of  neigh- 
bouring rocks.  At  some  points  the  superficial  gravel 
has  been  pierced  to  the  depth  of  1 00,  and  even  more 


5 


CilAF.  I. 


TO    TIIO.S!^    Ol'    tSWKDKN. 


than  200,  feet,  without  tlio  sohd  rode  Immmi?  loachcd; 
but  more  conuuoniy  lh(!  loose  tlcdituw  is  ol"  moderate 
thickness,  and,  when  roinovcd,  a  pohshcd  surface  of 
granitf!,  gneis^s,  or  mica  scliist,  is  exposed,  exhibiliiiu;'  a 
smooth  surface,  with  occasional  scratches  or  straight 
parallel  furrows.  Himo  and  there,  round(!d  and  ilat- 
tened  domes  of  smoothed  rock,  similar  in  sliape  to  the 
"roches  moutonnoes'' which  border  the  Al|)inc  glaciers, 
are  observable.  The  day  after  1  landed,  an  excava- 
tion recently  made  for  the  moiunnent  now  erecting  on 
Bunker's  Hill,  enabled  me  to  recognise  the  likeness  of 
this  drift  to  that  of  Scandinavia,  and  every  day  since 
I  have  seen  fresh  proofs  of  the  complete  correspondence 
of  these  remote  districts.  Professor  Hitchcock  has 
shown  that  in  New  England  the  parallel  grooves  or 
furrows  have  a  general  direction  nearly  north  and 
south,  but  usually  ten  or  fifteen  degrees  to  the  west  of 
north.  I  have  already  seen,  at  Nahant  and  elsewhere, 
some  marked  deviations  from  this  rule,  which,  however, 
is  correct  in  the  main,  and  these  markings  have  been 
found  to  prevail  at  all  heights  in  New  England,  even 
in  mountains  more  than  2000  feet  high. 

I  have  already  observed  several  rounded  boulders 
with  one  flat  side  scratched  and  furrowed,  as  if  it  had 
been  held  firmly  in  one  position  v.hen  frozen  into  ice, 
and  rubbed  against  a  hard  rocky  bottom. 

There  is  here,  as  in  Sweden,  so  great  an  extent  of 
low  coimtry  remote  from  any  high  mountains,  that  we 
cannot  attribute  the  elFects  al)ove  described  to  true  gla- 
ciers descending  in  the  open  air  from  the  higher  regions 
to  the  plains.  If  we  adopt  the  glacial  theory,  we  must 
suppose  the  country  to  have  been  submerged,  and  that 
the  northern  drift  was  brought  here  by  large  bodies  of 


I 


8 


DEPAHTURE    FOIl    NEW    HAVEN. 


CiiAr.  I. 


floating  ice,  which,  hy  rt'in^atcdly  running  aground  on 
the  hottoin  of  the  sea  lor  thouHunds  of  years,  and  for- 
cing along  the  Hand  under  their  enormous  weight,  pol- 
ished and  furrowed  tlie  rocky  hottoni,  and  on  the  melt- 
ing of  the  ice,  let  fall  their  hurden  of  stones  or  erratic 
blocks,  together  with  nuid  and  pehhles. 

When  we  recollect  that  Boston  is  situated  in  the  lat- 
itude of  Rome,  or  in  that  of  the  north  of  Spain,  and 
that  the  northern  drift  and  erratic  bUx^ks  in  Europe  are 
first  met  with  about  the  50th  degree  of  latitude,  and 
then  increase  as  we  travel  towards  the  |K)le;  there 
seems  ground  for  presuming,  that  the  greater  cold 
which  now  marks  the  climate  of  North  America  had 
begun  to  prevail  long  before  the  present  distribution  of 
land  and  sea  in  the  northern  hemisphere,  and  before 
the  present  climates  were  established.  Perhaps,  even 
in  the  glacial  period  of  geology,  the  lines  of  equal  win- 
ter's cold,  when  drawn  from  Europe  to  North  America, 
made  a  curve  of  about  lO*^  to  the  southward,  as  in  our 
own  times. 

Aug.  9. — After  a  week  spent  very  agreeably  at  Bos- 
ton, we  started  for  New  Haven  in  Connecticut,  going 
the  first  hvmdred  miles  on  an  excellent  railway  in 
about  five  hours,  for  three  dollars  each.  The  speed 
of  the  railways  in  this  State,  the  most  populous  in 
the  Union,  is  greater  than  elsewhere,  and  I  am  told 
that  they  are  made  with  American  capital,  and  for 
the  most  part  pay  good  interest.  There  are  no  tunnels, 
and  so  few  embankments  that  they  afford  the  traveller 
a  good  view  of  the  country.  The  number  of  small 
lakes  and  ponds,  such  as  are  seen  in  the  country  be- 
tween liUnd  and  Stockholm,  in  Sweden,  affords  a 
pleasing  variety  to  the  scenery,  and  they  are  as  useful 


Chap.  i. 


jTnixai'fF-f.D. 


0 


ns  tlicy  nro  orniiincMinl.  The  wntor  is  lieiiiilifiilly 
cli'iir,  and  wlini  fro/cii  t«»  tlic  ticpth  of  many  i'wi  in 
winter,  Hn|»|»li('H  lliosj'  laiifc  cMldcal  niasson  of"  |ro,  which 
aro  Haunl  and  Iranspoilcd  to  iho  principal  cities 
thionnhoiit  thn  Tnion,  and  even  shipped  to  Calcutta, 
ciossinuf  iIh-  cipialur  t\\ic(>  in  thrir  outward  voyaiic.  It 
has  hccn  truly  said,  that  this  part  of  Now  l'in;,dand 
owes  its  weahh  to  its  inthistry,  th(!  soil  heinj?  sterile,  tho 
timber  small,  and  there  l)ein<j^  no  staple  connnodilies  of 
native  frrowth,  ex<'ept  icn  and  «>^ranito. 

In  the  inland  country  between  Hoston  and  Spring- 
lield,  \v«;  saw  some  sand-hills  like  the  dunes  of  hlowii 
sand  near  the  coast,  which  were  probably  formed  oii 
the  sea-aide  before  the  country  was  elevated  to  its  pres- 
ent height.  Wc  passed  many  fields  of  maize,  or  In- 
dian corn,  before  arriving  at  Springfield,  which  is  a 
beautiful  village,  with  fine  avenues  of  the  American 
elm  on  each  side  of  the  widt;  streets.  From  Spring- 
field we  descended  the  river  Connecticut  in  a  steam- 
boat. Its  banks  were  covered  with  an  elegant  specie's 
of  golden  rod  {^S'olidag-o),  with  its  showy  bright  yellow 
flowers.  I  have  been  hitherto  disappointed  in  seeing 
no  large  timber,  and  I  am  told  that  it  was  cut  down 
originally  in  New  England  without  mercy,  because  it 
served  as  an  ambush  for  the  Indians,  since  which  time 
it  has  never  recovered,  being  consumed  largely  for  fuel. 
The  Americans  of  these  Eastern  States  Avho  visit  Eu- 
rope have,  strange  to  say,  derived  their  ideas  of  noble 
trees  more  from  those  of  our  principal  English  parks, 
than  from  the  native  forests  of  the  New  World. 

I  visited  Rocky  Hill,  near  Hartford  in  Connecticut, 
where  the  contact  is  scon  of  a  large  mass  of  columnar 
trap  with  red  sandstone.     In  a  large  quarry,  the  dis- 


i 


I'     ) 


I 


10 


NEW    HAVEN. 


CirAP.  I. 


tinct  joints  which  divide  the  sandstone  contrast  finely 
with  tlic  divisional  planes  which  separate  the  basalt  into 
pillars.  The  evidence  of  alteration  by  heat  at  the 
point  of  contact  is  very  marked,  and  has  been  well  de- 
scribed by  Dr.  Sillinian  in  a  paper  on  the  rocks  of  this 
place. 

The  city  of  New  Haven,  with  a  popnlation  of 
14,000  souls,  possesses,  like  Springlield,  fine  avenues  of 
trees  in  its  streets,  which  mingle  agreeably  with  the 
buildings  of  the  university,  and  the  numerous  churches, 
of  wlikli  we  counted  near  twenty  steeples.  When 
attending  service,  according  to  the  Presljyterian  form, 
in  tiie  College  chapel  on  Sunday,  I  could  scarcely 
believe  I  was  not  in  Scotland. 

In  an  expedition  to  the  north  of  the  town,  accom- 
panied by  Professor  Silliman,  his  son,  and  Mr.  Percival, 
a  geologist,  to  whom  the  execution  of  the  State  Survey 
of  Connecticut  was  entrusted,  I  exajnined  the  red  sand- 
stone {New  Red)  and  intrusive  volcanic  rocks  (basalt 
and  greenstone)  of  this  neighbourhood.  Dykes  of 
various  sizes  intersect  the  stratified  rocks,  and  occasion- 
ally flow  in  great  tabular  masses  nearly  parallel  to  the 
strata,  so  as  to  have  the  picturesque  eflect  of  cappings 
of  columnar  basalt,  although  Mr.  Percival  has  shown 
that  they  are  in  reality  intrusive,  and  alter  the  strata 
in  contact  both  above  and  below.  The  East  and 
West  Rocks  near  New  Haven,  crow  ned  with  trap,  bear 
a  strong  resemblance  in  their  outline  and  general  as- 
pect to  Salisbury  Crags,  and  other  hills  of  the  same 
structure  near  Edinburgh. 

We  saw  in  Hampden  parish,  lat.  41^  19',  on  the 
summit  of  a  high  hill  of  sandstone,  a  huge  erratic 
block  of  greenstone,  100  feet  in  circumference,  and  pro- 


i 


Chap.  i. 


PASSAGE    TO    NKW    VOIIK, 


11 


1 


jecting  11  feet  above  giouiid.  Other  large  trans- 
ported fragments  have  been  met  witli  more  than  1000 
feet  above  the  level  of  tlie  sea,  and  every  wlicre  straight 
parallel  furrows  appear  on  the  smooth  tmrface  of  the 
rocks,  where  the  superficial  gravel  and  sand  are  re- 
moved. 

In  a  garden  at  New  Haven  (August  13.)  I  saw,  for 
the  first  time,  a  humming  bird  on  the  wing.  It  was 
fiuttering  round  the  flowers  of  a  Gladiolus.  In  the 
suburbs  we  gathered  a  splendid  wild  flower,  the  scarlet 
Lobelia,  and  a  large  sweet-scented  water-lily.  The 
only  singing  bird  which  we  heard  was  a  thrush  with  a 
red  breast,  which  they  call  here  the  robin.  The  grass- 
hoppers were  as  numerous  and  as  noisy  as  in  Italy. 
As  we  returned  in  the  evening  over  some  low  marshy 
ground,  we  saw  several  fire-flics,  showing  an  occasional 
bright  spark.  They  are  small  beetles  resembling  our 
male  glow-worms  {Lampyris  Linn.,  Pyrolampis  scin- 
i'illans  Say). 

Aug.  13. — A  large  steamer  carried  us  from  New 
Haven  to  New  York,  a  distance  of  about  ninety  miles, 
in  less  than  six  hours.  We  had  Long  Island  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  main  land  on  the  other,  the  scenery  at 
first  tame  from  the  width  of  the  channel,  but  very 
Uvely  and  striking  when  this  became?  more  contracted, 
and  at  length  we  seemed  to  sail  into  the  very  suburbs 
of  the  great  city  itself,  passing  between  green  islands, 
some  of  them  covered  with  buildings  and  villas.  VYe 
had  the  same  bright  sunshine  which  we  have  enjoyed 
ever  since  we  landed,  and  an  atmosphere  unsullied 
by  thechimnies  of  countless  steam-boats,  factories,  and 
houses,  of  a  population  of  more  than  300.000  souls, 


if!  I 

I-  \  ■ 


-III 


j! 


'^i! 


in 


12 


SCENERY   OF    THE    HUDSON. 


Chap.  i. 


thanks  to  the  remoteness  of  all  fuel  save  anthracite  and 
wood. 

Next  day,  I  went  with  Mr.  Redfield,  well  known  by 
his  meteorological  writings,  across  the  Passaic  river  to 
Newark  in  New  Jersey,  where  we  examined  quarries 
of  the  New  Red  Sandstone,  and  saw  the  surfaces  of  the 
strata  ripple-marked,  and  with  impressions  of  rain- 
drops. They  also  exhibit  casts  on  their  under  sides  of 
cracks,  which  have  been  formed  by  the  shrinking  of 
the  layers  of  clay  when  drying.  These  appearances, 
together  with  imbedded  fragments  of  carbonized  fossil 
wood,  such  as  may  have  been  drifted  on  a  beach,  be- 
speak the  littoral  character  of  the  formation  on  which, 
in  many  places  in  Connecticut  and  Massachvisetts,  the 
fossil  footsteps  of  birds,  to  which  I  shall  afterwards  al- 
lude, have  been  found  imprinted. 

Aug:  16. — Sailed  in  the  splendid  new  steam-ship  the 
Troy,  in  company  with  about  500  passengers,  from 
New  York  to  Albany,  145  miles,  at  the  rate  of  about 
16  miles  an  hour.  When  I  was  infoinied  that  " seven- 
teen of  these  vessels  went  to  a  mile,"  it  seemed  incred- 
ible, but  I  found  that  in  fact  the  deck  measured  300 
feet  in  length.  To  give  a  sufficient  supply  of  oxygen 
to  the  anthracite,  the  machinery  is  made  to  work  two 
bellows,  which  blow  a  strong  current  of  air  into  the  fur- 
nace. The  Hudson  is  an  arm  of  the  sea  or  estuary, 
about  twelve  fathoms  deep,  above  New  York,  and  its 
waters  are  inhabited  by  a  curious  mixture  of  marine 
and  fresh-water  plants  and  moUusca.  At  first  on  our 
left,  or  on  the  western  bank,  we  had  a  lofty  precipice 
of  columnar  basalt  from  400  to  600  feet  in  height, 
called  the  Palisades,  extremely  picturesque.  This 
basalt  rests  on  sandstone,  which  is  of  the  same  age  as 


Chap.  i. 


ALBANY. 


13 


that  before  mentioned  near  New  Haven,  but  has  an  op- 
posite or  westward  dip.  On  arriving  at  the  Highlands, 
the  winding  channel  is  closed  in  by  steep  hills  of  gneiss 
on  both  sides,  and  the  vessel  often  holds  her  course  as  if 
bearing  directly  on  the  land.  The  stranger  cannot  guess 
in  which  direction  he  is  to  penetrate  the  rocky  gorge, 
but  he  soon  emerges  again  into  a  broad  valley,  the  blue 
Catskill  mountains  appearing  in  the  distance.  The 
scenery  deserves  all  the  praise  which  has  been  lavished 
upon  it,  and  when  the  passage  is  made  in  nine  hours  it 
is  full  of  variety  and  contrast. 

At  Albany,  a  town  finely  situated  on  the  Hudson, 
and  the  capital  of  the  State  of  New  York,  I  found  sev- 
eral geologists  employed  in  the  Government  svuvey, 
and  busily  engaged  in  forming  a  fine  museum,  to  illus- 
trate the  organic  remains  and  mineral  products  of  the 
country.  This  State  is  divided  into  about  the  same 
number  of  counties  as  England,  and  is  not  very  inferior 
to  it  in  extent  of  territory.  The  legislature  four  years 
ago  voted  a  considerable  sum  of  money,  more  than 
200,000  dollars,  or  40,000  guineas,  for  exploring  its  Nat- 
ural History  and  mineral  structure  ;  and  at  the  end  of 
the  first  two  years  several  of  the  geological  surveyors, 
of  whom  four  principal  ones  were  appointed,  reported, 
among  other  results,  their  opinion,  that  no  coal  would 
ever  be  discovered  in  their  respective  districts.  This 
announcement  caused  no  small  disappointment,  espe- 
cially as  the  neighbouring  state  of  Pennsylvania  was 
very  rich  in  coal.  Accordingly,  during  my  tour,  I 
heard  frequent  complaints  that,  not  satisfied  with  their 
inability  to  find  coal  themselves,  the  surveyors  had  de- 
cided that  no  one  else  would  ever  be  able  to  detect  any, 
having  had  the  presumption  to  pass  a  sentence  of  future 


o 


til! 


U 


1    ..:;!! 


'  ■'■''• 


14 


GEOLOGICAL    SURVEYS. 


Chap.  i. 


sterility  on  the  whole  land.  Yet,  in  spite  of  tliese  expres- 
sions of  ill-humour,  it  Avas  sali-jfactory  to  observe  that 
the  rashness  of  private  speculators  had  received  a 
wholesome  check ;  and  large  sums  of  money,  which 
for  twenty  years  previously  had  been  annually  sc[uan- 
dered  in  trials  for  coal  in  rocks  below  the  carboniferoufj 
scries,  were  henceforth  saved  to  the  public.  Tlicre  can 
be  little  doubt  that  the  advantage  derived  to  the  ro 
sources  of  the  State  by  the  cessation  of  this  annual 
outlay  alone,  and  the  more  profitable  direction  since 
given  to  private  enterprise,  is  sufficient  to  indemnify  the 
country,  on  mere  utilitarian  grounds,  for  the  sum  so 
munificently  expended  by  the  government  on  geologi- 
cal investigations.  The  resemblance  of  certain  Silurian 
rocks  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson  river  to  the  bitumi- 
nous shales  of  the  true  Coal  formation  was  the  chief 
cause  of  the  deception  which  misled  the  mining  adven- 
turers of  New  York.  I  made  an  excursion  southwards 
from  Albany,  with  a  party  of  geologists,  to  Normans- 
kill  Creek,  where  there  is  a  waterfall,  to  examine  these 
black  slates,  containing  graptohtes,  trilobites,  and  other 
Lower  Silurian  fossils.  By  persons  ignorant  of  the  or- 
der of  superposition  and  of  fossil  remains,  they  might 
easily  be  mistaken  for  Coal  measures,  especially  as 
some  small  particles  of  anthracite,  perhaps  of  animal 
origin,  do  actually  occur  in  them. 

On  leaving  Albany,  I  determined  so  to  plan  my  route 
to  the  Falls  of  Niagara  and  l)ack  again  to  the  Hudson, 
as  to  enable  me  to  see  by  the  way  the  entire  succession 
of  mineral  groups  from  the  lowest  Silurian  up  to  (he 
coal  of  Pennsylvania.  Mr.  James  Hall,  to  whose  hands 
the  north-west  division  of  the  geological  survey  of  New 
York  had  been  confided,  kindlv  offered  himself  as  mv 


Chap.  I.     ANCIENT  OR  SILURIAN  FORMATIONS. 


15 


guide.  Taking  the  railway  to  Schenectady,  and  along 
the  Mohawk  valley,  we  Ihst  stopped  at  Little  Falis, 
where  we  examined  the  gneiss  and  the  lowest  Silurian 
sandstone  resting  upon  it.  Wt;  then  pursued  our  jour- 
ney along  the  line  of  the  Erie  Canal  and  the  Mohawk 
River,  stopping  here  and  there  to  examine  quarries  of 
limestone,  and  making  a  short  detour  through  the  heau- 
tifiil  valley  of  Cedarville  in  Herkimer  County,  where 
there  is  a  fine  section  of  the  straUi.  Afterwards  we  ex- 
plored the  picturesque  ravine  through  \\hich  the  Gene- 
see Hows  at  Rochester,  the  river  descending  hj'  a  suc- 
cesr'ion  of  cataracts  over  the  same  rocks  which  are  ex- 
posed faither  Avestward  on  the  PNiagara.  The  excava- 
tions also  made  for  the  grand  canal  at  Lockport  afibrded 
us  a  fine  opportimity  of  seeing  these  older  fossiliferous 
rocks  laid  open  to  view.  At  this  point  the  barges  laden 
with  merchandise  climb  up,  by  a  series  of  locks  placed 
one  above  the  other,  to  the  table  land  in  which  Lake 
Erie  is  situated.  In  the  course  of  this  short  tour,  I  be- 
came convinced  that  we  must  turn  to  the  New  World 
if  we  wish  to  see  in  perfection  the  oldest  monuments  of 
the  earth's  history,  so  far  at  least  as  relates  to  its  earli- 
est inhabitants.  Certainly  in  no  other  country  are 
these  ancient  strata  develpped  on  a  grander  scale,  or 
more  plentifully  charged  with  fossils ;  and,  as  they  are 
nearly  horizontal,  the  order  of  their  relative  position  is 
always  clear  and  unequivocal.  They  exhil)it,  more- 
over, in  their  range  from  the  Hudson  River  to  the  Ni- 
agara, some  fine  examples  of  the  gradual  manner  in 
which  certain  sets  of  strata  thin  out  when  followed  for 
hundreds  of  miles,  while  others  previously  wanting  be- 
come intercalated  in  the  series.  Thus,  for  example, 
some  of  the  limestones  which  are  several  hundred  feet 


i  1 


'"'ill 


■i  ' 


?!hi 


till  I. 


16 


ANCIENT  OR  SILURIAN  FORMATIONS.     Chap.  I. 


thick  in  the  Heldciberg  TTills,  near  Albany,  are  scarcely 
forty  feet  thick  in  the  Niagara  district ;  and  on  the 
other  hand,  tlie  rocks  over  which  the  cataract  of  Ni- 
agara is  precipitated,  dwindle  away  to  such  insignificant 
dimensions  when  followed  eastward  to  the  hills  S.  W. 
of  Albany,  that  their  place  in  the  series  there  can 
scarcely  be  recognised.  Another  interesting  fact  may 
be  noticed  as  the  result  even  of  a  cursory  survey  of  the 
fossils  of  these  North  American  rocks,  namely,  that 
while  some  of  the  species  agree,  the  majority  of  them 
are  not  identical  with  those  found  in  strata,  which  are 
their  equivalents  in  age  and  position  on  the  other  side 
of  the  Atlantic.  Some  fossils  which  are  identical,  such 
as  Atrypa  affinis,  Leptcetia  depressa,  and  L.  eugly- 
pha,  are  precisely  those  shells  which  have  a  great  ver- 
tical and  horizontal  range  in  Europe, — species  which 
were  capable  of  surviving  many  successive  changes  in 
the  earth's  surface,  and  for  the  same  reason  enjoyed  at 
certain  periods  a  w  ide  geographical  range.  It  has  been 
usually  affirmed  that  in  the  rocks  older  than  the  car- 
boniferous, the  fossil  fauna  in  different  parts  of  the  globe 
was  almost  every  where  the  same ;  but,  judging  from 
the  first  assemblage  of  organic  remains  which  I  have 
seen  here,  it  appears  to  me,  that  however  close  the 
general  analogy  of  forms  may  be,  there  is  evidence  of 
the  same  law  of  variation  in  space  as  now  prevails  in 
the  living  creation. 

A  few  years  ago,  it  was  a  fatiguing  tour  of  many 
weeks  to  reach  the  Falls  of  Niagara  fro'r;  Albany.  We 
are  now  carried  along  at  the  rate  oi  ixteen  miles  an 
hour,  on  a  railway  often  supported  on  piles,  through 
large  swamps  covered  with  aquatic  trees  and  shrubs,  or 
through  dense  forests,  with  occasional  clearings  where 


IONS.     Chap.  i. 

/^,  are  scarcely 
and  on  the 
taract  of  Ni- 
i  insignificant 
le  hills  S.  W. 
ies  there  can 
ing  fact  may 
survey  of  the 
namely,  that 
[ority  of  them 
Lta,  which  are 
the  other  side 
dentical,  such 
nd  L.  Gugly- 
;  a  great  ver- 
species  which 
'^e  changes  in 
5on  enjoyed  at 
It  has  heen 

than  the  car- 
ts of  the  globe 
judging  from 
kvhich  I  have 

ver  close  the 
is  evidence  of 
3W  prevails  in 

tour  of  many 
A.lbany.  We 
teen  miles  an 
piles,  through 
and  shrubs,  or 
tarings  where 


Chap.  i. 


PROSPERITY    OF    THE    PEOPLE. 


17 


orchards  are  planted  by  anticipation  among  the  stumps, 
before  they  have  even  had  time  to  run  up  a  log-house. 
The  traveller  views  with  surprise,  in  the  midst  of  so 
much  unoccupied  land,  one  nourishing  town  after  an- 
other, such  as  Utica,  Syracuse,  and  Auburn.  At  Roches- 
ter he  admires  the  streets  of  large  houses,  inhabited  by 
20,000  souls,  where  the  first  settler  built  his  log-cabin 
in  the  wilderness  only  twenty-five  years  ago.  At  one 
point  our  train  stopped  at  a  handsome  new  built  sta- 
tion-house, and,  looking  out  at  one  window,  we  saw  a 
group  of  Indians  of  the  Oneida  tribe,  lately  the  owners 
of  the  broad  lands  around,  but  now  humbly  offering 
for  sale  a  few  trinkets,  such  as  baskets  ornamented  with 
porcupine  quills,  moccasins  of  moose-deer  skin,  and  boxes 
of  birch-bark.  At  the  other  window  stood  a  well- 
dressed  waiter  handing  ices  and  confectionary.  When 
we  reflect  that  some  single  towns,  of  which  the  founda- 
tions were  laid  by  persons  still  living,  can  already  num- 
ber a  population,  equal  to  all  the  aljoriginal  hunter 
tribes  who  possessed  the  forests  for  hundreds  of  miles 
around,  we  soon  cease  to  repine  at  the  extraordinary 
revolution,  however  much  we  may  commiserate  the 
unhappy  fate  of  the  disinherited  race.  They  who  are 
accustomed  to  connect  the  romance  of  their  travels  in 
Europe  or  Asia  with  historical  recollections  and  the 
monuments  of  former  glory,  with  the  study  of  master- 
pieces in  the  fine  arts,  or  with  grand  and  magnificent 
scenery,  will  hardly  believe  the  romantic  sensations 
which  may  be  inspired  by  the  aspect  of  this  region, 
where  very  few  points  of  picturesque  beauty  meet  the 
eye,  and  wheie  the  aboriginal  forest  has  lost  its  charm 
of  savage  wildncss  by  the  intrusion  of  railways  and  ca- 
nals.    The  foreign  naturalist  indeed  sees  novelty  in 

2* 


18 


PROSPERITY    OF    TITK    PEOPLE. 


CilAP.  I. 


\A\ 


every  plant,  bird,  and  insect ;  and  the  remarkable  re- 
semblances of  the  rocks  at  so  groat  a  distance  from 
home  are  to  him  a  source  of  wonder  and  insf  ruction. 
But  there  are  other  ol)jccl3  of  intense  interest,  to  en- 
liven or  excite  tlio  imagination  of  every  traveller.    Here, 
instead  of  dsvc^lling  on  the  past,  and  on  the  signs  of 
pom})  and  grandeur  which  have  vanished,  the  mind  is 
lilled  with  images  of  coming   power   and   si)lendour. 
The  vast  stride  made  by  one  generation  in  a  brief  mo- 
ment of  time,  naturally  disposes  us  to  magnify  and  ex- 
aggerate the  rapid  rate  of  future  improvement.     The 
contemplation  of  so  much  prosperity,  such  entire  ab- 
sence of  want  and  poverty,  so  many  school-houses  and 
churches,  rising  every  where  in  the  woods,  and  such  a 
general  desire  of  (education,  with  the  consciousness  that 
u  great  continent  lies  beyond,  which  lias  still  to  be  ap- 
propriated, fills  the  traveller  with  cheering  thoughts  and 
sanguine  hopes.     He  may  be  reminded  that  there  is 
another  side  to  the  picture,  that  where  the  success  has 
been  so  brilliant  and  where  large  fortunes  have  been 
hastily  realised,  there  will  be  rash  speculations  and  bit- 
ter disappointments ;  but  these  ideas  do  not  force  them- 
selves into  the  reveries  of  the  passing  stranger.     He 
sees  around  him  the  solid  fruits  of  victory,  and  forgets 
that  many  a  soldier  in  the  foremost  ranks  has  fallen  in 
the  breach ;  and  cold  indeed  would  be  his  temperament 
if  he  did  not  sympathise  with  the  freshness  and  hope- 
fulness of  a  new  country,  and  feel  as  men  past  the 
prime  of  life  are  accustomed  to  feel  when  in  company 
with  the  young,  wlio  are  full  of  health  and  buoyant 
spirits,  of  faith  and  confidence  in  the  future. 

Aug:  24. — In  the  suburbs  of  Rochester,  Mr.  Hall 
and  I  visited  a  spot  where  the  remains  of  the  great 


Chap.  i. 


LAKK    ONTARIO. — TORTOISES. 


19 


Mastodon  had  been  dug  up  from  a  bod  of  white  shell- 
mail.  I  found  fragments  of  the  fossil  teeth  and  ivory  of 
one  tusk,  and  ascertained  that  the  accompanying  shells 
were  of  recent  s|)ecies  of  the  genera  Linmca,  Planor- 
bis,  Valvala,  Cf/clas,  (Sec.  We  also  examined  the 
narrow  ridge  composed  of  sand  and  gravel  between 
Rochester  and  Ijake  Ontario,  which  has  been  traced  for 
a  hundred  miles,  running  nearly  parallel  to  the  lake, 
and  from  three  to  eight  miles  distant  from  it.  It  rises 
from  ten  to  twenty  feet  above  the  general  level  of  the 
surrounding  plain  of  clay,  and  presents  a  steep  slope  to 
the  north  and  south,  allbrding  an  excellent  road,  like 
the  sand-ridges  or  osars  which  I  have  seen  in  Sweden, 
and  which  are  doubtless  of  similar  origin.  Geologists 
are  all  agreed  that  these  and  other  similar  ridges  sur- 
rounding the  great  Canadian  lakes,  and  occurring  at 
different  heights  above  them,  were  once  lines  of  beach 
surrounding  great  bodies  of  water.  Whether  these  con- 
sisted of  lakes  or  seas, — how  the  water  came  to  stand 
at  so  many  different  levels,  and  whether  some  of  the 
ridges  were  not  originally  banks  and  bars  of  sand 
formed  under  water,  are  points  which  I  shall  discuss  in 
the  sequel. 

While  we  were  roaming  along  the  shore  of  Lake  On- 
tario, to  compare  the  old  ridge  road  with  the  modern 
beach,  we  saw  several  tortoises  of  different  species  bask- 
ing in  the  sini  on  logs  of  drift  wood  in  the  shallow 
ponds  connected  with  the  lake.  We  caught  one  of 
these  [Testudo  picta),  which  has  a  gaily  coloured 
shell,  and  I  afterwards  carried  it  a  day's  journey  in 
the  carriage,  and  then  turned  it  out,  to  sec  whether,  as 
I  was  told,  it  would  know  its  way  back  to  Lake  On- 
tario.    I  am  bound  to  admit  that  its  instinct  on  this 


I' I 


!l 


20 


NEW    SETTLERS. 


ClIAP.   I. 


occasion  did  not  fail,  for  it  made  directly  for  a  ravine,  in 
the  bottom  of  which  was  a  stream  that  would  l(!ad  it 
in  time  to  the  Genesee  River,  and  this  would  carry  it 
to  its  native  lake,  if  it  escaped  dtistruction  at  tlie  falls 
below  Rochester,  where  ihe  celebrated  diver,  Sam 
Patch,  perished,  after  he  had  succeeded  in  throwing 
himself  with  impunity  down  several  other  great  water- 
falls. There  is  a  fresh-water  tortoise  in  Europe  (  Ter- 
rapetia  jEuropea),  found  in  Hungary,  Prussia,  and 
Silesia,  as  far  nortli  as  lat.  50'^  to  o2^.  If  also  occurs 
near  Bordeaux,  and  in  the  north  of  Italy,  44*^  and  45"^ 
N.  lat,,  which  precisely  corresponds  with  the  latitude  of 
Lake  Ontario. 

In  moist  places  along  the  lake  shore,  and  in  the  lanes 
and  high  roads,  we  saw  rmmerous  yellow  butterflies 
{Colias  philodice — C.  E>iiopoma  of  some  authors) 
very  like  a  British  species.  Sometimes  forty  clustering 
on  a  small  spot  resembled  a  plot  of  primroses,  and  as 
they  rose  altogether,  and  flew  off*  slowly  on  every  side, 
it  was  like  the  play  of  a  beautiful  fountain. 

On  our  way  home  through  the  woods  we  stopped  at 
the  cabin  of  some  new  settlers  near  the  lake,  many 
miles  from  any  neighbours,  in  the  midst  of  a  square 
clearing  covered  with  blackened  stumps,  where  not  a 
single  tree  or  shrub  had  been  spared.  The  view  was 
bounded  on  every  side  by  a  dense  wall  of  dark  wood 
striped  wnth  white  by  the  vertical  lines  of  the  numerous 
tall  and  straight  trees  without  side  branches,  and  sup- 
porting a  dark  canopy  of  foliage.  When  we  admired 
the  forest,  the  settler's  wife  was  pleased,  but  said,  sigh- 
ing, that  she  could  not  get  her  children  to  see  any 
beauty  in  trees.      They  had  never  known  the  old 


Chap,  l 


NEW    SETTLERS. 


21 


country,  nor  other  friends,  and  were  happier  than  she 
and  her  husband  could  be,  tliough  in  their  worldly 
concerns  they  were  thriving,  and  had  every  reason  to 
feel  content,  except  when  attacked  by  the  ague,  so 
common  in  the  newly-cleared  grounds. 


22 


FALLS    OF    NIAOAIIA  : 


Chap.  ii. 


! . 


CHAPTER  II. 

Distant  and  nrnr  Vine  of  the  Falls  of  Niagara. — Whelhtr  the  Falls 
have  receded  from  Qucnislmi  to  their  present  Hile. — ficoirrajihiral 
Features  of  the  Rfjrion. — Course  of  the  Rirrr  almre  and  hrloio 
the  Falls. — Recent  Proofs  of  Frosion. — Historical  Dnla  in  the 
Works  of  nrnncjiin  and  Kalm. — (iruliitrical  Kridenre  derived 
^roni  Flnviatile  Strata  or  Reninnnts  of  an  old  River-hnl  in  (Inat 
lidaud  and  elsewhere. —  DiJJicullij  of  romputinu  the  Rate  of  the 
retrograde  Movnient. — Varying  Hardness  and  Thickness  of  the 
Rocks  undermined. — Future  Recession. — Ai^e  of  the  Drift  and 
Limestone  Escarpments. — Snccrtsire  Chunires  which  i>rcredrd  and 
accompanied  the  Origin  of  the  Falls. — R'Jlcctions  on  the  Ltpac  of 
past  Time. 

All"--  27. — We  first  cnmo  in  niirlit  of  (he  Falls  of 
Niiigaia  when  thoy  were  about  throe  milo.s  (li>tant. 
The  sun  was  shining  full  upon  them — no  huikling  in 
view — nothing  but  the  green  wood,  the  Ihlliug  wa'er, 
and  the  white  foam.  At  that  moment  they  appeared 
to  me  more  heautilul  than  I  had  cxj.ectcd,  and  less 
grand;  but  after  several  days,  when  I  had  eiijoyod  a 
nearer  view  of  the  two  cataract^<,  had  listened  to  their 
thundering  sound,  and  gazed  on  thein  for  hours  from 
above  and  below,  and  had  watched  flic  river  foaming 
over  the  rapids,  then  phmging  headlong  into  the  dark 
pool, — and  when  I  had  explored  the  delightful  island 
which  divides  the  falls,  where  the  solitude  of  the  an- 
cient forest  is  still  unbroken,  I  at  last  learned  by  de- 
grees to  comprehend  the  wonders  of  the  scene,  and  to 
feel  its  full  magnilicence. 

Early  in  the  morning  after  our  arrival,  I  saw  from 
the  window  of  our  hotel,  on  the  American  side,  a  long 
train  of  white  vapoury  clouds  hanging  over  the  deep 


Chap.  ii.     Till   tR   UKOOIlAI'TIICAr,    FF.ATURKS. 


cliaHDi  IhjIuw  the  fiillfj.  Tliny  were  Hli;jfli(ly  tiiiliMl  by 
tlio  rays  of  llu;  risin;]^  huh,  and  Idowii  slowly  noilli- 
wanls  by  a  ^oiilli;  hrec/c^  from  llu^  pool  below  llic  cat- 
mac  t,  Avbich  was  ilsc'lf  iiivisibicj  from  this  |>()iiit  of  vii-w. 
jNo  fi)<(  was  risiiisr  fi-om  tho  ground,  the  sky  was  clear 
above  ;  uiul  us  tlu;  day  advaiiccul,  and  (he  air  "jrow 
warm,  the  vapours  all  disappeared.  This  scene  w- 
luiiuled  mo  of  my  lirst  viinv  of  iMouiit  I'hiit'i  from 
Catania,  at  sunriso  in  the  aultnim  of  ]S;iS,  when  I 
saw  deiiso  vohnnes  of  steam  issninj^  from  tlu;  stnninit 
of  the  highest  crater  in  a  clear  blue  sky,  which,  at  the 
heiiiht  of  more  than  two  miles  above  the  s(>a,  assumed 
at  onc(;  the  usual  shape  and  hues  of  clouds  in  the  up- 
])('r  atmosphere.  Those,  too,  vanished  before  neon,  as 
soon  as  the  sun's  heat  increased. 

Etna  presents  us  not  merely  with  an  imajre  of  (he 
power  of  subterranean  heat,  but  a  record  also  of  the 
vast  period  of  time  durini»"  which  that  power  has  been 
ex(!rted.  A  majestic  mountain  has  been  produced  by 
volcanic  action,  yet  the  time  of  which  the  volcano 
forms  the  register,  however  vast,  is  found  by  the  geol- 
ogist to  be  of  inconsiderable  amount,  even  in  the  mod- 
ern annals  of  the  earth's  history.  In  like  manner,  the 
Falls  of  Niagara  teach  us  not  merely  to  appreciate  the 
power  of  moving  water,  but  furnish  us  at  the  same 
lime  with  data  lor  estimating  the  enormous  lapse  of 
ages  during  which  that  force  has  operated.  A  deep 
and  long  ravine  has  been  excavated,  and  the  river 
has  re([uired  ages  to  accomplish  the  task,  yet  the  same 
region  allbrds  evidence  that  the  sum  of  these  ages  is 
as  notliing,  and  as  the  work  of  yesterday,  when  com- 
pared to  the  antecedent  periods,  of  which  there  are 
monuments  in  the  same  district. 


1 


mm 


.'  ii. 


■\m 


-i 


Hii'i!'       I 


24 


COURSE    OP    THE    RIVER 


Chap,  n 


It  has  long  been  a  favourite  subject  of  discussion 
whether  the  Falls  were  once  situated  seven  miles  farther 
north,  or  at  Queenston.  The  ideal  bird's-eye  view 
given  in  the  frontispiece  may  assist  the  reader  who  has 
not  visited  the  spot  to  form  a  tolerably  correct  general 
notion  of  the  geographical  configuration  of  this  coun- 
try, which  is  very  simple.  The  view  has  been  con- 
structed from  a  sketch  pulilished  by  Mr.  Bakewell,  in 
Loudon's  Magazine  for  1830,  into  which  the  geological 
rejjresentation  of  the  rocks,  as  they  appear  on  the  sur- 
face and  in  the  ravine  of  the  Niagara,  has  been  intro- 
duced from  the  State  Survey  by  Mr.  Hall.*  The  plat- 
form, in  a  depression  of  which  Lake  Erie  is  situated,  is 
more  than  330  feet  above  Lake  Ontario,  and  the  de- 
scent from  a  higher  to  a  lower  level  is  sudden  and  ab- 
rupt at  the  es(^arpmcnt  called  the  Queenston  heights. 
The  strata  throughout  this  whole  region  are  nearly 
horizontal,  but  they  have  a  gentle  dip  to  the  south  of 
25  feet  in  a  mile.  This  inclination  is  sufficient  to 
cause  the  different  groups  of  rock  to  crop  out  one  irom 
beneath  the  other,  or  come  up  to  the  surface  in  parallel 
zones,  which  may  be  traced  for  a  great  distance  east 
and  west  through  the  state  of  New  York  and  Canada. 
(See  Map.)  They  all  consist  of  different  members  of 
the  Silurian  series,  the  uppermost  or  newest  being  those 
nearest  to  Lake  Erie.  (See  section  fig.  4.,  p.  37.)  In 
the  bird's-eye  view,  the  Niagara  is  seen  bounded  by 

*  Mr.  Bakewell  gave  me  his  original  sketches  in  1841,  and  I  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  combining  his  pictorial  view  with  a  geological  repre- 
sentation of  the  rocks  before  I  gave  a  lecture  on  the  Niagara  district 
at  Boston,  in  October,  1841,  in  which,  and  in  planning  some  of  the 
other  diagrams,  and  in  discussing  the  theorj'  of  recession,  I  was  as- 
sisted by  Mr.  Hall. 


m. 


t  of  discussion 
n  miles  farther 
)ird's-eye  view 
cader  who  has 
correct  general 
1  of  this  coun- 
has  been  con- 
r.  Bakewell,  in 
I  the  geological 
ar  on  the  sur- 
has  been  intro- 
11.*  Theplat- 
e  is  situated,  is 
3,  and  the  de- 
udden  and  ab- 
jnston  heights, 
ion  are  nearly 
to  the  south  of 
is  sufficient  to 
)  out  one  from 
face  in  parallel 
t  distance  east 
k  and  Canada. 
It  members  of 
est  being  those 
4.,  p.  37.)  In 
n  bounded  by 

1841,  and  I  con- 
a  geological  rcpre- 
he  Niagara  district 
lining  some  of  the 
ecession,  I  was  aa- 


3d:  A  j^  a'^  s"sr^, 


1 

!                    ;     iM.U-rbi;-!, 

4    '"" 

1    V 

" fiiufstoiie 

Ortom/iiiftt 

o 

<'>        BS9 

3 

1                    1    Xitl^tlirg 
lutte.rtune 

G     I 

j   J/-</i,i 

.fflttlf 


n  (fytitp 


I  SiuuLrione 


Chap.  II.      ABOvt;  AND  nr:Low  Tin:  falls. 


25 


low  banks  where  it,  irisua  from  Livke  Erie,  and  varying 
in  width  from  one  to  three  miles.  It  hero  resembles  a 
prolongation  of  the  tranquil  lake,  being  interspersed 
with  low  wooded  islands.  This  lake-like  scenery  con- 
tinues for  about  fifteen  mile?,  during  which  the  fall  of  the 
river  scarcely  exceeds  as  many  feet,  but  on  reaching  the 
rapids,  it  descends  over  a  limestone  bed  about  50  feet  in 
less  than  a  mile,  and  is  then  thrown  down  about  165 
feet  perpendicularly  at  the  I'alls.  The  largest  of  these, 
called  the  Ilorseshoe  Fall,  is  1800  feet,  or  more  than  a 
third  of  a  mile,  broad,  the  island  in  the  midst  somewhat 
less  in  width,  and  the  American  Fall  about  600  feet 
wide.  The  deep  narrow  chasm  below  the  great  cata- 
ract is  from  200  to  400  yards  wide,  and  300  feet  deep ; 
and  here  in  seven  miles  the  river  descends  100  feet,  at 
the  end  of  which  it  emerges  from  the  gorge  into  the 
open  and  Hat  country  so  nearly  on  a  level  with  Lake 
Ontario  that  there  is  only  a  fall  of  about  four  feet  in 
the  seven  additional  miles  which  intervene  between 
Q,ueenston  and  the  Lake.  The  great  ravine  is  wind- 
ing, and  makes  a  turn  nearly  at  right  angles  to  itself  at 
the  whirlpool,  where  the  ISiagara  sweeps  round  a  large 
circular  basin,  but  it  is  represented  in  the  frontispiece  as 
nearly  straight,  for  the  sake  of  showing  the  stratifica- 
tion ;  and  its  proportional  height  is  puqDosely  exagger- 
ated. At  some  points  the  boundary  clilFs  are  under- 
mined on  one  side  by  the  impetuous  stream,  but  there 
is  usually  a  talus  at  the  base  of  the  precipice,  support- 
ing a  very  ornaniental  fringe  of  trees. 

It  has  long  been  the  popular  belief,  from  a  mere  cur- 
sory inspection  of  this  district,  that  the  Niagara  once 
flowed  in  a  shallow  valley  across  the  whole  platform 
from  the  present  site  of  the  Falls  to  the  Queenstou 

3 


26 


RECENT    PROOFS    OF    ETIOSIOX. 


Chap,  ii. 


is 


ri 


Ill  I 


iiil 


n 


heights,  whcro  it  is  suppos^cd  the  cataract  was  fivst  sit- 
uated, and  that  the  river  has  been  s^lowly  eating  its 
way  backwards  through  the  rocks  for  a  distance  of 
seven  miles.  According  to  this  hypothesis,  the  Falls 
must  liavc  had  originally  nearly  twice  their  present 
height,  and  must  have  been  always  diminishing  in 
grandeur  from  age  to  age,  as  they  will  continue  to  do 
in  future  so  long  as  the  retrograde  movement  is  pro- 
longed. It  becomes,  therefore,  a  matter  of  no  small 
curiosity  and  interest  to  inquire  at  what  rate  the  work 
of  excavation  is  now  going  on,  and  thus  to  obtain  a 
measure  for  calculating  how  many  thousands  of  years 
or  centuries  have  been  required  to  hollow  out  the 
chasm  already  excavated. 

It  is  an  ascertained  fact,  that  the  Falls  do  not  re- 
main absokitely  stationary  at  the  same  point  of  space, 
and  that  they  have  shifted  their  position  slightly  du- 
ring the  last  half  century.  Every  obser\'er  will  also  be 
convinced  that  the  small  portion  of  the  great  ravine, 
which  has  been  eroded  within  the^ memory  of  man,  is 
so  precisely  identical  in  diaracter  with  the  whole  gorge 
for  seven  miles  Ijelow,  that  the  river  supplies  an  ade- 
quate cause  for  executing  the  task  assigned  to  it,  pro- 
vided we  grant  suflicient  time  for  its  completion. 

The  waters,  after  cutting  through  strata  of  Umestone, 
about  fifty  feet  thick  in  the  rapids,  descend  perpendic- 
ularly at  the  Falls  over  another  mass  of  limestone 
about  ninety  feet  thick,  beneath  which  he  soft  shales  of 
equal  thickness,  continually  undermined  by  the  ac- 
tion of  the  spray  driven  violently  by  gusts  of  wind 
against  the  base  of  the  precipice.  In  consequence  of 
this  disintegration,  portions  of  the  incumbent  rock  are 
left  unsupported,  and  tumble  down  from  time  to  time, 


t^HAP.    11. 


RECKNT    PUOOFS    OF    F.ROSION. 


27 


EO  that  tlie  cataract  is  made  to    recede  southwards. 
The  sudden  descent  of  huge  rocky  fragments  of  the 
undermined  limestone  at  the  Horseshoe  t'all,  in  1828, 
and  another  at  the  American  Full,  in  1818,  are  said  to 
have  shaken  the  adjacent  country  Uke  an  earthquale. 
According  to  the  statement  of  our  guide  in  1841,  Sam- 
uel Hooker,  an  indentation  of  about  forty  feet  has  been 
produced  in  the  middle  of  the  ledge  of  limestone  at  the 
lesser  fall  since  the  year  1815,  so  that  it  has  begun  to 
assume  the  shape  of  a  crescent,  while  within  the  same 
period    the  Horseshoe  Fall  has   been  altered  so  as 
less  to  deserve  its  name.     Goat  Island  has  lost  sev- 
eral acres  in  area  in  the  last  four  years,  and  I  have  no 
doubt  that  this  waste  neither  is,  nor  has  been,  a  mere 
temporary  accident,  since  I  found  that  the  same  reces- 
sion was  in  progress  in  various  other  waterfalls  which  I 
visited  with  Mr.  Hall,  in  the  state  of  New  York.   Some 
of  these  intersect  the  same  rocks  as  the  Niagara — for 
example,  the  Genesee  at  Rochester ;  others  are  cutting 
their  way  through  newer  formations,  as  Allan's  Creek 
below  IjC  Roy,  or  the  Genesee  at  its  upper  falls  at  Por- 
tage.    Mr.  Bakewell  calculated  that,  in  the  forty  years 
preceding  1830,  the  Niagara  had  been  going  back  at 
the  rate  of  about  a  yard  annually,  but  I  conceive  that 
one  foot  per  year  would  be  a  much  more  probable  con- 
jecture, in  which  case  35,000  years  would  have  been 
required  for  the  retreat  of  the  Falls  from  the  escarp- 
ment of  Queenston  to  their  present  site,  if  we  could  as- 
sume that  the  retrograde  movement  had  been  uniform 
throughout.    This,  however,  could  not  have  been  the 
case,  as  at  every  step  in  the  process  of  excavation  the 
height  of  the  precipice,  the  hardness  of  the  materials  at 
its  base,  and  the  quantity  of  fallen  matter  to  be  re- 


;  -■  / 


28      DATA    IN    THE    WORKS    OF    IIF.NXIIPIX.      Ciup.  II, 

moved,  must  have  varied.  At  some  points  it  may  have 
receded  much  faster  than  at  present,  at  others  much 
slower,  and  it  would  be  scarcely  possible  to  decide  whe- 
ther its  average  progress  has  been  more  or  less  rapid 
than  now. 

Unfortunately  our  historical  evidence  of  the  former 
"condition  of  the  cataract  is  meagre  and  scanty  in  the 
extreme.  Sixty  years  ago,  the  whole  district  between 
Lakes  Erie  and  Ontario  was  a  wilderness  in  which  the 
Indian  hunter  chased  the  bear  and  the  buffalo.  When 
at  Boston,  ray  attention  was  called  by  Mr.  Ingraham  to 
a  work  translated  from  the  original  French  of  Father 
Hennepin,  a  missionary  who  gave  a  description  of  the 
grand  cataract  and  a  plate  of  it,  as  it  appeared  in  the 
year  1678.  It  is  not  wonderful  that  coming  sudder.ly 
upon  the  Falls  which  no  European  traveller  had  ever 
seen  before,  he  should  have  believed  them  to  be  twice 
their  real  height.  "  Betwixt  the  lakes  Ontario  and 
Erie,"  he  says,  "  there  is  a  vast  and  prodigious  cadence 
of  water,  which  falls  after  an  astonishing  manner,  inso- 
much that  the  universe  does  not  afford  its  parallel.  As 
to  the  waters  of  Italy  and  Swedelandj  they  are  but 
sorry  patterns  of  it,  and  this  wonderful  downfall  is  com- 
pounded of  two  great  falls,  with  an  isle  in  the  middlo, 
and  there  is  another  cascade  less  than  the  other  two 
which  falls  from  west  to  east.  I  wished  a  hundrtsd 
times  that  somebody  had  been  jvith  us,  who  could  have 
described  the  wonders  of  this  frightful  fall.  In  the 
mean  time,  accept  the  following  draught  such  as  it 
is." — From  his  plate  it  appears  that  this  third  cascade 
was  produced  by  what  he  terms  "  the  elbow"  caused  by 
the  projection  of  the  table  rock,  which  must  then  have 
been  more  prominent  than  now. 


PIN.      Chvp.  II. 

Ls  it  may  have 

others  much 

to  decide  whe- 

B  or  less  rapid 

of  the  former 
scanty  in  the 
istrict  between 
s  in  whicli  the 
uffalo.    When 
r.  Ingraham  to 
ich  of  Father 
cription  of  the 
ppeared  in  the 
ning  suddei.ly 
seller  had  ever 
em  to  be  twice 
3  Ontario  and 
ligious  cadence 
r  manner,  inso- 
ts  parallel.    As 
',  they  are  but 
ownfall  is  com- 
in  the  middle, 
the  other  two 
led  a  liundAd 
who  could  have 
1  fall.     In  the 
ight  such  as  it 
3  third  cascade 
bow"  caused  by 
flust  then  have 


•*^ 


■ 


^ 


FA  I'  f^'JiVfiiHiK   PI?  A  ^MK'y^'  DF.>IA(VAKA  h'Al.luH, 
by  i'iUhw  l.oiu.s  ileniicpin 


]Tullr".!ir..de!  ' 


^. 


■^^% 


*.,- 


Chap.  ii. 


KALMS    DESCUIPTIO:^. 


89 


T!ii''lr-.r,r.Ae'  ''■'  'AV:r'nI  fli'  :$iK. 


A   l^'Al.l.'^^' 


Seventy-tliree  years  afterwards),  or  iu  1751,  a  letter 
was  published  in  the  Gentleman's  Magazine  for  that 
year  by  Kahn,  the  Swedish  botanist,  on  the  Falls  of 
Niagara.  His  description  is  also  illustrated  by  a  plate, 
in  which  the  proportional  height  and  breadth  of  the 
Falls  are  given  more  correctly.  The  lesser  L'all  on  tho 
left  bank  of  the  river  is  omitted  ;  but  at  the  place 
where  it  had  been  represented  in  Father  Hennepin's 
sketch,  Kalm  inserts  the  letter  "  a,"  referring  to  a  nolo 
in  which  he  says,  "  Here  the  water  was  formerly  forced 
out  of  its  direct  course  by  a  projecting  rock,  which  when 
standing  turned  the  water  off  obliquely  across  the  other 
Fall." 

This  observation  confirms  the  reality  of  Hennepin's 
oblique  cascade,  and  shows  that  some  waste  had  been 
going  on  in  the  intermediate  seventy-three  years,  ma- 
king a  visible  alteration  in  the  scene,  and  leading  us  to 
infer  that  the  rocks  have  been  suffering  continual  di- 
lapidation for  more  than  the  last  century  and  a  half. 

In  the  absence  of  more  ample  historical  data,  we  are 
fortunately  not  without  geological  evidence  of  the  for- 
nier  existence  of  a  channel  of  the  Niagara  at  a  much 
higher  level,  before  the  table-land  was  intersected  by 
the  great  ravine.  Long  before  my  visit  to  the  Niagara, 
1  had  been  informed  of  the  existence  on  Goat  Island  of 
beds  of  gravel  and  sand  containing  fluviatile  shells,  and 
some  account  had  been  given  of  these  by  Mr.  Hall  in 
his  first  report  in  1839 ;  I  therefore  proposed  to  him 
that  w^e  should  examine  these  carefully,  and  see  if  we 
could  trace  any  remnants  of  the  same  along  the  edges 
of  the  river-clills  below  the  Falls.  We  began  by  col- 
lecting in  Goat  Island  shells  of  the  genera  Unio,  Cy- 
clase 3Ielania,    Valvata,  Limnea,   Planorbis,  and 

3^ 


\\ 


30 


REMNANT    OF    AN   OLD   RIVER-BED.        Chap. 


Helix,  all  of  rccoHt  species,  in  the  superficial  tleposit. 
They  form  regular  bctlH,  nnd  luunerous  individuals  of 
the  Unio  and  Cyclas  have  l)oth  their  valves  united. 
We  then  found  the  same  formation  exactly  opposite  to 

Fig.  I. 

West. 

A 

Br, 


Section  at  JViagara  Falln. 

L.  Limestone  80  feet  thick.    S.  Shale  80  feet  thick. 

d.  Freshwater  strata  on  Goat  Island,  tihovo  20  feet  thick. 

d'.  Same  formation  on  the  American  side,  containing  bones  of  Mastodon. 

«.  Led|;e  of  l)nre  limestone  on  the  Canada  side. 

/.   Ancient  drift. 

the  Falls  on  the  top  of  the  cliff  (at  d',  fig.  1.)  on  the 
American  side,  where  two  river-terraces,  one  twelve 
and  the  other  twenty-four  feet  above  the  Niagara,  have 
been  cut  in  the  modern  deposits.  In  these  we  observed 
the  same  fossil  shells  as  in  Goat  Island,  and  learnt  that 
the  teeth  and  other  remains  of  a  mastodon,  some  of 
which  were  shown  us,  had  been  found  thirteen  feet  be- 
low the  surface  of  the  soil.  We  were  then  taken  by 
our  guide  to  a  spot  farther  north,  where  similar  gravel 
and  sand  with  fluviatile  shells  occurred  near  the  edge 
of  the  cliff  overhanging  the  ravine,  resting  on  the  solid 
limestone.  It  was  about  half  a  mile  below  the  prin- 
cipal Fall,  and  extended  at  some  points  300  yards  in- 
land, but  no  farther,  for  it  was  then  bounded  by  the 
bank  of  more  ancient  drift  (/,  fig.  1.).  This  deposit  pre- 
cisely occupies  the  place  which  the  ancient  bed  and  al- 
luvial plain  of  the  Niagara  would  naturally  have  filled, 


I 


.;1 


i 


Chap.  n. 


IN    GOAT    ISLAND. 


31 


f  Mastodon. 


I 
1 


if  the  river  once  extended  farther  northwards,  at  a  ievol 
siiillcicntly  liigh  to  cover  the  t^reater  part  of  doat  Is- 
land. At  that  jKjriod  the  ravine  could  not  have  ex- 
isted, and  there  must  have  been  a  barrier,  several  miles 
lower  down,  at  or  near  the  whirlpool. 

Fig.  3. 
North.  South. 


Section  of  Ooat  Island  from  JVorth  to  South,  2500 /cet  in  length. 

A.  Masslvo  cnnipnct  portion  of  tho  NinEiirii  llmpstono. 

U.  Upper  thln-bcddod  portion  of  the  Niagara  llnicstune,  strata  slightly  Inclined  to 

the  South. 
e.   Hori7.ontal  freshwater  bods  of  pravel,  sand,  and  loam,  with  shells. 
D,  E.  Present  surface  of  the  river  Niagara  at  the  Rapids. 

The  supposed  original  channel,  through  which  the 
waters  flowed  from  Lake  Erie  to  Queenston  or  Lewis- 
ton,  was  excavated  chiefl)'^,  but  not  entirely,  in  the  su- 
perficial drift,  and  the  old  river-banks  cut  in  this  drift 
are  still  to  be  seen  facing  each  other,  on  both  sides  of 
the  ravine,  for  many  miles  below  the  Falls.  A  section 
of  Goat  Island  from  south  to  north,  or  parallel  to  the 
course  of  the  Niagara  (see  fig.  2.),  shows  that  the 
limestone  (B)  had  been  greatly  denuded  before  the  flu- 
viatile  beds  (c)  were  accumulated,  and  consequently 
when  the  Falls  were  still  several  miles  below  their  pres- 
ent site.  From  this  fact  I  infer  that  the  slope  of  the 
river  at  the  rapids  was  principally  due  to  the  original 
shape  of  the  old  channel,  and  not,  as  some  have  con- 
jectured, to  modern  erosions  on  the  approach  of  the 
Falls  to  the  spot. 


m 


I 


■■ 


32 


ANCIENT    FliUVIATIl-n. 


CH\r.   ri 


Tlio  observations  inndo  in  1811  inilucoil  inc  in  the 
followini;  year  (June,  181*2)  to  ro-<'xaniinn  (Uli<renlly 
botli  sides  of  tlio  river  iVoin  I  lie  I'alls  to  la'wiston  ami 
(iueeiistoM.  to  ascertain  if  any  other  patclics  of  the  an- 
cient river-bed  had  escaped  destruction.  Accordinjjly, 
followin^r  first  the  cd^<;  of  the  rlitls  on  the  eastern 
bank,  I  discovered,  with  no  small  delight,  at  the  sum- 
mer-house (Fi,  iig.  3.),  above  the  whirlpool,  a  bed  of 

Fig.  3. 


K 


,^vS>>*^rT->.'..'-.-^ 


Section  at  the  Summer-house  above  Whirlpool,  east  bank  of  Niagara, 

A.  Thlck-liedded  limestone,  same  as  at  Fulls. 

b.  AnrU'ntdrift. 

r.  Iloulder^  nt  bn<:n  nf  steep  hank  formed  by  drift. 

rf.  Fri'sliwiitor  strat.i  forty  feet  thick. 

K.  Biiinmer  house. 

stratillcd  sand  and  r^ravcl,  forty  feet  thick,  containing 
lluviatile  shells  in  abundance.  Fortunately,  a  few 
yards  from  the  summer-house  a  pit  had  been  recently 
dug  for  the  cellar  of  a  new  house  to  the  depth  of  nine 
feet  in  the  shelly  sand,  in  which  1  found  shells  of  the 
genera  Unio,  Ct/chis,  Melania,  Helix,  and  Pupa,  not 
only  identical  in  species  with  those  which  occur  in  a 
fresh  state  in  the  bed  of  the  \iagara,  near  the  ferry, 


t 


>'}^ 


Ch*p    tu 

il  uic  in  tlie 
nc  (UUscntly 
>wiston  and 
icH  of  the  aii- 
Accorclini^ly, 
I  the  custciu 
,  at  the  sum- 
lool,  a  bed  of 


('lur.  II. 


i)i:poHrr  wirii  hiiii.i.s. 


ant  of  JViagaro, 
Us. 

y  drift. 


hick,  containing 
innately,  a  few 
id  been  recently 
he  depth  of  nine 
ind  shells  of  the 
V,  and  Pnpa,  not 
khich  occur  in  a 
:a,  near  the  ferry, 


but  coirospondiii!^  al>()  in  the  pnipoi-tioiiiiic  nunibrr  of 
individuiil?^  b('l(>n<^iny'  la  rach  s|)('cit's,  \\n'.  vahi's  of 
Cyclas  nhitilis.  for  j'xanipic,  licintr  thr  ww.A  ninncrouH. 
Thi!  »i\\\w  yrar  I  fonnd  also  a  remnant  of  the  old  river- 
bed on  (h(i!  opposite  or  Canadian  sideof  ihe  river,  al)ont 
a  mile  and  a  half  above  the  whirlpool,  or  two  milen 
and  a  half  below  the  I'alls.  'I'lnsi!  Iliels  appear  eon- 
clnsivc  as  (o  the  former  extension  of  a  more  elevated 
valley,  four  miles,  at  least,  below  the  Tails;  and  at  this 
point  the  old  river-bed  nnist  liavi;  been  so  hij^h  as  to  be 
capable  of  holdinsr  back  the  waters  which  covered  all 
the  patclu'sof  (Inviatile  sand  and  i^ravel,  inclndinu;  that 
of  (Joat  Island.  .\.s  the  table-land  or  limesione-platfonn 
rises  f^ently  to  the  north,  and  is  hifj[hestnear  Queenstoii, 
(here  is  no  reason  to  snppo.<e  that  there  was  a  greater 
fall  in  the  Niagara  Avhen  it  llowed  at  its  higlid-  level, 
than  now  between  l^akc  llrie  and  the  Falls;  and  ac- 
cording to  this  view,  the  old  chamiel  might  well  have 
furnished  the  reiiuired  barrier. 

I  have  stated  that  on  the  left,  or  Canadian  bank  of 
the  Niagara,  below  the  I^'alls,  I  succeeded  in  detecting 
sand  with  freshwater  shells  at  on<;  point  only,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  nuuldy  river.  Tin;  ledge  of  limestone 
on  this  side  is  usually  laid  bare,  or  only  covered  by  ve- 
getable mould  (as  at  c,  lig.  1 .),  until  we  arrive  at  the 
boulder  clay  (/,  lig.  I.),  which  is  sometimes  within  a 
few  yards  of  the  top  of  the  precipice,  and  sometimes 
again  retires  eighty  yards  or  more  from  it,  being  from 
twenty  to  fifty  feet  in  height.  I  also  found  an  old 
river-bed  running  through  the  drift  parallel  to  the  Ni- 
agara, its  covnsc  still  marked  by  swamps  and  ponds,  such 
as  we  find  in  all  alluvial  plains,  and  only  remarkable 
here  because  the  river  now  runs  at  a  low^er  level  by  300 


n 


i!'F;:  :' 


i:l 


!| 


34 


RECESSION    OF    THE 


Chap.  ii. 


feet.    This  deserted  channel  occurs  between  the  Muddy 
River  and  the  Whirlpool,  and  is  100  yards  broad. 

There  is  also  a  notch  or  indentation,  called  the 
"  Devil's  Hole,"  on  the  right  or  eastern  side  of  the  Ni- 
agara, half  a  mile  below  the  Whirlpool,  which  deserves 
notice,  for  there,  I  think,  there  are  signs  of  the  Great 
Cataract  having  been  once  situated.  A  small  stream- 
let, called  the  "Bloody  Run,"  from  a  battle  fought 
there  with  the  Indians,  joins  the  Niagara  at  this  place, 
and  has  hollowed  out  a  lateral  chasm.  Ascending  the 
great  ravine,  we  here  see,  facing  us,  a  projecting  cliff 
of  limestone,  which  stands  out  forty  feet  beyond  the 
general  range  of  the  river  cliff  below,  and  has  its  flat 
summit  bare  and  without  soil,  just  as  if  it  had  once 
formed  the  eastern  side  of  the  Great  Fall. 

By  exploring  the  banks  of  the  Niagara  above  the 
Falls,  I  satisfied  myself  that  if  the  river  should  continue 
to  cut  back  the  ravine  still  farther  southwards,  it  would 
leave  here  and  there,  near  the  verge  of  the  precipice 
and  on  its  islands,  strata  of  sand  and  loam,  with  fresh- 
water shells  similar  to  those  already  described.  I  col- 
lected fossil  shells,  for  example,  on  the  left  bank,  near 
the  Chippewa  River,  and  learnt  that  others  had  been 
reached,  in  sinking  a  well,  in  1 818,  at  the  south-east 
end  of  Grand  Island.  The  situation  of  such  deposits 
is  represented  at  a,  a  (fig.  4.,  p.  37.). 

The  patches  of  fluviatile  strata,  therefore,  occurring 
between  the  old  banks  of  drift  (/,  /,  fig.  1.,  p.  30.)  and 
the  precipice,  and  not  having  been  met  with  on  other 
parts  of  the  platform  at  a  distance  from  the  Niagara, 
confirm  the  theory,  previously  adopted  on  independent 
evidence,  of  the  recession  of  the  Falls  from  Q,ueenston 
southwards.  The  narrowness  of  the  gorge  near  Q,ueens- 


'I 
1 


1 


'1 


m 


Chap.  ii. 


Chap.  n. 


FAT  .  =)    OF    NIAGARA. 


35 


the  Muddy 

broad. 

called  the 

;  of  the  Ni- 

ich  deserves 

[)f  the  Great 

nail  streani- 

attle  fought 

It  this  place, 

scending  the 

ojecting  cliff 

beyond  the 

has  its  flat 

it  had  once 

ra  above  the 
ould  continue 
irds,  it  would 

the  precipice 
n,  with  fresh - 
;ribed.  I  col- 
ft  bank,  near 
ers  had  been 
he  south-east 

such  deposits 

are,  occurring 
L.,  p.  30.)  and 
vith  on  other 
the  Niagara, 
1  independent 
m  Q,ueenston 
near  Q,ueens- 


ton,  where  it  is  just  large  enough  to  contain  the  rapid 
current  of  watcn  accords  well  with  the  same  hypothesis, 
and  there  is  no  ground  for  suspecting  that  the  excavation 
v.as  assisted  by  an  original  rent  in  the  rocks,  because 
there  is  no  fissure  at  present  in  the  hmestone  at  the 
Falls,  where  the  moving  waters  alone  have  power  to 
cut  tbeir  way  backwards. 

I  have  already  remarked  that  there  will  always  bo 
insuperable  diflicullies  in  the  way  of  estimating  with 
precision  the  rate  of  the  retrogression  of  the  Falls  in 
former  ages,  because  at  every  step  new  strata  have  been 
successively  exposed  at  the  base  of  the  precipice.  Ac- 
cording to  their  softer  or  harder  nature,  the  undermin- 
ing process  must  have  been  accelerated  or  retarded. 
This  will  be  understood  by  reference  to  the  annexed 
section  (tig.  4.),  where  the  line  b,  c,  d,  represents  the 
present  surface  of  the  river  along  which  the  Falls  have 
receded.  The  strata  (1,  3,  and  7,)  are  of  soft  materials ; 
the  others,  (2,  4,  and  8),  which  slightly  project  at  their 
termination  in  the  escarpment,  are  of  a  more  compact 
and  refractory  kind.  It  has  been  necessary  to  exag- 
gerate the  southward  dip  of  the  strata  in  this  diagram, 
which  is  in  reality  so  slight  as  to  be  insensible  to  the 
eye,  being  only,  as  before  mentioned,  about  twenty-five 
feet  in  a  mile,  the  river  channel  sloping  in  an  opposite 
direction  at  the  rate  of  fifteen  feet  in  a  mile.  These 
two  inclinations,  taken  together,  have  caused,  as  Mr. 
Hall  has  pointed  out  in  his  Survey,  a  diminution  of 
forty  feet  in  the  perpendicular  height  of  the  Falls  for 
every  mile  that  they  receded  southward.  By  reference 
to  the  section,  the  reader  will  perceive  that  when  they 
were  situated  at  the  Whirlpool  (c),  the  quartzose  sand- 
stone (2),  which  is  extremely  hard,  was  at  the  base  of 


o 


O     ff 


s' 


^ 


to 


£       2       «  -5 
^     r       2  £ 

2-     a      c  « 


•5   .  -      2 


e    <- 


■a       jJ 

I       1 


.2        ** 


=  5 


5^   "    S 


ft  a 

.2  o 
S5  S 


.5  «^ 


b    fi   —    S 


i!    S.  c■•- 


»    o    o    a     . 
—  rt  =    .   ra 


S       =5  I? 


■^     ^ 


-  --f  1 


^    c    t.   ^ 


e.     i:     '^     s     Tt    t^    us  *f 


a     ■->   "—   — 

•-*   -3   j£   ^           S  -J    C 

—    .   o  Q.  .=  Sf  s.  '5 

S  <;  J    iT  =.  .2  ^  •« 

•s  "^  -5  .^  ;=  5  '  ^ 

•a       s"  ri  ^  h 

«■       ""^  si  ^  ^' 


in   e   " 


■3 


e 
ss 

o 


a 

.S 
o 

3 

•r 

C 


o 


S  g 

2  m 

3  H 

11 

^1 


J-  0) 


"s 


o 

VI 

o  -a 

£  S 

O  X 

.5  S 

■O  3 

-  c 


^      a:  -^ 


-3 


e  3 


to 


<?; 


■§.2  .5 


;§3 


^    "  £    =  ^    I    g 


eij    0) 


•a  .3  -  <£  .3 


5  2  rt  2 


u    3*-»'0    0,03    C"a 


■o         3   •»  t^  — 


c  o. 


c    rt    o 


o  U 


J  i.S  "^-a^ 


ei    C    n    fl    "    - 


£  g  =.  a 


S  I 


_.    cj    T   ■**    a)   **    w 


a  t  T 


a    a! 


5    o'-5    V    3    c 


P  ^   n. 

S     ej     -< 


i-t     i_     *r     "^ 


I.&S 


<  o 


1-^ 


3  -ts 


S  ti 


O  aJ 


r3 


•^         »t  s4         '« 


w«  a 


«  5  J  g        -- 
r^  oo  a;  0i       S 


*' 


ClIAf.  II. 


OIliGlX    OK    THi:    FALLS. 


37 


s- 

a 
u 


§       I 

■q       a 


1        I 

=        I 

a 
o 
■a 

u 

o 


J       _. 


■°   2  .5 
S  -a  .3 

Si" 

O    -2    " 


13 

O 


.s  o 

-  a 


it  o 

C  ao 

.0  S 

.  Q 

V:  ••3 

§  o 

£  .3 

2  o 


§ 


.fl  -3, 


oca 
2  g 


r  ^    BO 

o  5  S 
a,  'i  "33 

o 


the  precipice,  and  here  tlie  Groat  Cataract  may  have 
remained  nearly  stationary  for  rigos. 

In  regard  to  the  future  retroccsfion  of  the  Falls,  it 
will  be  perceived  by  the  .same  section  (fig.  4.),  that  when 
they  liave  travelled  back  two  miles,  or  to  i,  /t,  the  mas- 
sive limestone  (S),  now  at  the  top  of  the  Falls,  will 
then  be  at  their  base  ;  and  its  great  hardness  may, 
perhaps,  eflfectually  stop  the  excavating  process,  if  it 
should  not  have  been  previously  arrested  by  the  descent 
of  large  masses  of  the  same  rock  from  the  cliff  above. 
It  will  also  appear  that  the  Falls  will  continually  di- 
minish in  height,  and  should  they  ever  reach  Lake 
Erie,  they  will  intersect  entirely  diflerent  strata  from 
those  over  which  they  are  now  thrown. 

The  next  inquiry  into  which  we  are  naturally  led 
by  our  retrospect  into  the  past  history  of  this  region, 
relates  to  the  origin  of  the  Falls.  If  they  Avere  once 
seven  miles  northward  of  their  present  site,  in  what 
manner,  and  at  what  geological  period,  did  they  first 
come  into  existence  ?  In  tracing  back  the  series  of  past 
events,  we  have  already  seen  that  the  last  change  was 
the  erosion  of  the  great  ravine ;  previously  to  which  oc- 
curred the  deposition  of  the  freshwater  deposit,  including 
fossil  shells  of  recent  species,  and  the  bones  of  the  Mas- 
todon. Thirdly,  of  stiU  older  date  was  the  drift  or 
boidder  formation  which  overspreads  the  whole  platform 
and  the  face  of  the  escarpment  near  Queension,  as  well 
as  the  low  country  between  it  and  Lake  Ontario. 
Fourthly,  the  denudation  of  the  line  of  cUfl'  or  escarp- 
ment, in  wliich  the  table-land  ends  abruptly,  preceded 
the  origin  of  the  drift.  I  shall  endeavour  to  show,  in  a 
subsequent  chapter,  when  speaking  of  Canada,  that 
this  drift  was  of  marine  origin,  and  formed  when  the 


u    ^1 


m 


»  *  01     ** 


■!   ! 


38 


ORIOIN    OF    THE    FALLS. 


ClIAP.    II. 


whole  country  was  subracrged  beneath  tlie  sea.  In  the 
region  of  the  Niagara  it  is  stratified,  and  though  no 
fossils  have  as  yet  been  detected  in  it,  similar  deposits 
occur  in  the  valley  of  the  St.  Lawrence  at  Montreal,  at 
a  height  nearly  equal  to  Lake  Erie,  where  fossil  shells, 
of  species  such  as  now  inhabit  the  northern  seas,  he 
buried  in  the  drift. 

It  is  almost  superfluous  to  affirm  that  a  consideration 
of  the  geology  of  the  whole  basin  of  the  St.  Lawrence 
and  the  great  lakes  can  alone  entitle  us  to  speculate  on 
the  state  of  things  which  immediately  preceded  or  ac- 
companied t^  p  jiigin  of  the  Great  Cataract.  To  give 
even  a  brief  sketch  of  the  various  phenomena  to  which 
our  attention  must  be  directed,  in  order  to  solve  this  cu- 
rious problem,  would  require  a  digression  of  several 
chapters.  At  present  the  shortest  and  most  intelligible 
way  of  explaining  the  results  of  my  observations  and 
reflections  on  this  subject  will  be  to  describe  the  succes- 
sive changes  in  the  order  in  which  I  imagine  them  to 
have  happened.  The  first  event  then  to  which  we 
must  recur  is  the  superficial  waste  or  denudation  of  the 
older  stratified  rocks  (from  1  to  10  inclusive,  section, 
fig.  4.,  p.  37.),  all  of  which  had  remained  nearly  undis- 
turbed and  horizontal  from  the  era  of  their  formation 
beneath  the  sea  to  a  comparatively  modern  period. 
That  they  were  all  of  marine  origin  is  proved  by  their 
imbedded  corals  and  shells.  They  at  length  emerged 
slowly,  and  portions  of  their  edges  were  removed  by  the 
action  of  the  waves  and  currents,  by  which  cliffs  were 
formed  at  successive  heights,  especiaUy  where  hard 
limestones  (such  as  Nos.  10  and  8,  fig.  4.)  at  Blackrock 
and  Lewiston,  were  incumbent  on  soft  shales.  After 
this  denudation  the  whole  region  was  again  gradually 


¥ 


"lIAP.    11. 

In  the 
ifjli  no 
ieposits 
;real,  at 
I  shells, 
seas,  lie 

deration 
awience 
ulate  on 
d  or  ac- 
To  give 
to  which 
J  this  cu- 
f  several 
itelUgible 
tions  and 
le  succes- 
them  to 
vhich  we 
ion  of  the 
!,  section, 
rly  undis- 
fovmation 
n    period, 
d  by  their 
emerged 
vcd  by  the 
cUtfs  were 
here   hard 
Blackrock 
lies.     After 
gradually 


Chap.  ii. 


ORIGIN    OF   THE    FALLS. 


39 


submerged,  and  this  event  took  place  during  the  glacial 
period,  at  which  time  the  surfaces  of  the  rocks  already 
denuded  were  smoothed,  polished,  and  furrowed  by 
glacial  action,  which  operated  successively  at  diflferent 
levels.  The  country  was  then  buried  under  a  load  of 
stratified  and  unstratified  sand,  gravel,  and  erratic 
blocks,  occasionally  80,  and  in  some  hollows  more  than 
300,  feet  deep.  An  old  ravine  terminating  at  St.  Da- 
vid's, which  intersects  the  limestone  platform  of  the 
iS'iagara,  and  opens  into  the  great  escaipment,  illus- 
trates the  posteriority  of  this  drift  to  the  epoch  when 
the  older  rocks  were  denuded.  The  period  of  submer- 
gence last  alluded  to  was  very  modern,  for  the  shells  then 
inhabiting  the  ocean  belonged,  almost  without  excep- 
tion, to  species  still  living  in  high  northern,  and  some 
of  them  in  temperate,  latitudes.  The  next  great 
change  was  the  re-emergence  of  this  country,  consist- 
ing of  the  ancient  denuded  rocks,  covered  indiscrimi- 
nately with  modern  marv>e  drift.  The  upward  move- 
ment by  which  this  was  accomplished  was  not  sudden 
and  instantaneous,  but  gradual  and  intermittent.  The 
pauses  by  which  it  was  interrupted  are  marked  by  an- 
cient beach-lines,  ridges,  and  terraces,  found  at  different 
heights  above  the  present  lakes.  These  ridges  and 
terraces  are  partly  due  to  the  denudation  and  re-ar- 
rangement of  the  materials  of  the  drift  itself,  which 
had  previously  been  deposited  on  the  platform,  the  slo- 
ping face  of  the  escarpments,  and  in  the  basins  of  the 
great  lakes. 

As  soon  as  the  table-land  between  Lakes  Erie  and 
Ontario  emerged  and  was  laid  dry,  the  river  Niagara 
came  into  existence,  the  basin  of  Lake  Ontario  still  con- 
tinuing to  form  part  of  the  sea.     From  that  moment 


\ 


40 


REFLECT lOXS    ON    THE 


Chap.  ii. 


there  was  a  cascade  at  Q,ueenston  of  niodeiatc  height, 
which  fell  directly  into  the  soa.     The  upperiiiost  lime- 
stone and  subjacent  slate  (8  and  7,  fig.  4.  p.  37.)  being 
exposed,  the  cataract  conuuenced  its  retrograde  course, 
while  the  lower  b(!ds  in  the  escarpment  (from  6  to  1) 
were  still  protected  from  waste  by  remaining  submerged. 
A  second  fall  would  in  due  time  be  caused  by  the  con- 
tinued rise  of  the  land  and  the  exposure  of  the  hard 
beds  (6  and  4),  constituting  what  is  called  the  Chnton 
group,  together  with  the  soft  and  easily  undermined 
red  shale  (3),  on  which  they  repose.     Finally,  a  third 
cascade  Avould  in  all  likelihood  be  produced  by  the  rise 
of  another  hard  masa,  the  quartzose  sandstone  (2,  fig.  4.) 
resting  on  very  destructible  red  shale  (1).     Three  falls, 
one  above  the  other,  very  similar  in  their  geological 
and  geographical  position  to  those  actually  seen  on  the 
river  Genesee  at  Rochester,  would  thus  be  formed.    The 
recession  of  the  uppermost  must  have  been  gradually  re- 
tarded by  the  thickening  of  the  incumbent  limestone 
(No.  8,  fig.  4),  in  proportion  as  the  Falls  savv'ed  their 
way  southwards.     By  this  means  the  second  cataract, 
which  would  not  sulVer  the  same  retardation,  might 
overtake  it,  and  the  two  united  would  then  be  retarded 
by  the  large  quantity  of  rock  to  be  removed,  until  the 
lowest  fall  would  come  up  to  them,  and  then  the  whole 
would  be  united  into  one. 

The  principal  events  enumerated  in  the  above  ret- 
rospect, comprising  the  submergence  and  re-emer- 
gence of  the  Canadian  lake  district  and  valley  of  the 
St.  Lawrence,  the  deposition  of  freshwater  strata,  and 
the  gradual  erosion  of  a  ravine  seven  miles  long,  are 
all  so  niodern  in  the  earth's  history  as  to  belong  to  a 
period  when  the  marine,  the  flu  via  tile,  and  terrestrial 


m 


Chap.  ii. 

c  height, 
lost  lime- 
7.)  being 
le  course, 
111  6  to  1) 
bmerged. 
r  tlie  con- 

the  hard 
10  Clinton 
idermined 
[y,  a  third 
ay  the  rise 
i  (2,  fig.  4.) 
Mirce  falls, 

geological 
cell  on  the 
nied.    The 
•adually  re- 
t  limestone 
sawed  their 
id  cataract. 
Lion,  might 
be  retarded 

,  until  the 
1  the  whole 

above  ret- 
id  re-eiiicr- 
alley  of  the 

strata,  and 
es  long,  are 
aelong  to  a 
d  terrestrial 


Chap,  ii. 


LAPSi:    OF    PAST    TIMC. 


41 


shells,  were  the  same,  or  nearly  the  same,  as  those  now 
Uving.  Yet  if  we  fix  our  thoughts  on  any  one  portion  of 
this  period — on  the  lapse  of  time,  for  example,  required 
for  the  recession  of  the  Niagara  from  the  escarpment  to 
the  Falls, — how  immeasurably  great  will  its  duration 
appear  in  comparison  with  the  sum  of  years  to  which 
the  annals  of  the  human  race  are  limited  !  Had  we 
happened  to  discover  strata,  charged  with  fluviatile 
shells  of  recent  species,  and  enclosing  the  bones  and 
teeth  of  a  Mastodon,  near  a  river  at  the  bottom  of  some 
valley,  we  might  naturally  have  inferred  tliat  the  bu- 
ried quadruped  had  perished  at  an  era  long  after  the 
canoes  of  the  Indian  hunter  had  navigated  the  North 
American  waters.  Such  an  iixfcrence  might  easily 
have  been  drawn  respecting  the  fossil  tusk  of  the  great 
elephantine  quadruped,  which  I  saw  taken  out  of  the 
shell-marl  on  the  banks  of  the  Genesee  River  near  Ro- 
chester (see  p.  19.).  But  fortunately  on  the  Niagara, 
we  may  turn  to  tlie  deep  ravine,  and  behold  therein  a 
chronometer  measuring  rudely,  yet  emphatically,  the 
vast  magnitude  of  the  interval  of  years,  which  sepa- 
rate the  present  time  from  the  epoch  when  the  Niagara 
flowed  at  a  higher  leycl  several  miles  further  nortli 
across  the  platform.  We  then  become  conscious  how 
far  the  two  events  before  confounded  together, — the  en- 
tombment of  the  Mastodon,  and  the  date  of  the  first 
peopling  of  the  earth  by  man, — may  recede  to  dis- 
tances almost  indefinitely  remote  from  each  other. 

But,  however  much  we  may  enlarge  our  ideas  of 
the  time  which  has  elapsed  since  the  Niagara  first  be- 
gan to  drain  the  waters  of  the  upper  lakes,  we  have 
seen  that  this  period  was  one  only  of  a  series,  all  be- 
longing to  the  present  :';oological  epoch  ;  or  that  in  which 

4* 


!'t!! 


1 


m 


42 


IILFLKCTIONS    ON    THE 


Chap.  ii. 


the  living  testaceous  fauna,  whether  freshwater  or  ma- 
rine, liad  ah'eady  conic  into  being.  If  such  events  can 
take  place  w  hile  the  zoology  of  the  earth  remains  al- 
most stationary  and  unaltered,  what  ages  may  not  be 
comprehended  in  those  successive  tertiary  periods  du- 
ring which  the  Flora  and  Fauna  of  the  globe  have 
been  almost  entirely  changed  !  Yet  how  subordinate  a 
place  in  the  long  calendar  of  geological  chronology  do 
the  successive  tertiary  periods  themselves  occupy ! 
How  much  more  enormous  a  duration  must  we  assign 
to  many  antecedent  revolutions  of  the  earth  and  its  in- 
habitants !  No  analogy  can  be  found  in  the  natural 
world  to  the  immense  scale  of  these  divisions  of  past 
time,  unless  we  contemplate  the  celestial  spaces  which 
have  been  measured  by  the  astronomer.  Some  of  the 
nearest  of  these  within  the  limits  of  the  solar  system, 
as,  for  example,  the  orbits  of  the  planets,  are  reckoned 
by  hundreds  of  millions  of  miles,  which  the  imagina- 
tion in  vain  endeavours  to  grasp.  Yet  one  of  these 
spaces,  such  as  the  diameter  of  the  earth's  orbit,  is  re- 
garded as  a  mere  unit,  a  mere  infinitesimal  fraction  of 
the  distance  which  separates  our  sun  from  the  nearest 
star.  By  pursuing  still  farther  the  same  investigations, 
we  learn  that  there  are  luminous  clouds  scarcely  distin- 
guishable by  the  naked  eye,  but  resolvable  by  the  tel- 
escope into  clusters  of  stars,  which  are  so  much  more 
remote,  that  the  interval  between  our  sun  and  Sirius 
may  be  but  a  fracticn  of  this  larger  distance.  To  re- 
gions of  space  of  this  higher  order  in  point  of  magni- 
tude, we  may  probably  compare  such  an  interval  of 
time  as  that  which  divides  the  human  epoch  from  the 
origin  of  the  coralUne  limestone  over  which  the  Niagara 
is  precipitated  at  the  Falls.    Many  have  been  the  suo- 


ClIAP.  II. 


LAPSE    OF    PAST    TIME. 


43 


cessive  revolutions  in  organic  life,  and  many  the  vicis- 
situdes in  the  pliysical  geography  of  the  globe,  and 
often  has  sea  been  converted  into  land,  and  land  into 
sea,  since  that  rock  was  formed.  The  Alps,  the  Pyre- 
nees, the  Himalaya,  have  not  only  begun  to  exist  as  lofty 
mountain  chains,  but  the  solid  materials  of  which  they 
are  composed  have  been  slowly  elaborated  beneath  the 
sea  within  the  stupendous  interval  of  ages  here  al- 
luded to. 

The  geologist  may  muse  and  speculate  on  these 
events  until,  filled  with  awe  and  admiration,  he  forgets 
the  presence  of  the  mighty  cataract  itself,  and  no  long- 
er sees  the  rapid  motion  of  its  waters,  nor  hears  their 
sound,  as  they  fall  into  the  deep  abyss.  But  whenever 
his  thoughts  are  recalled  to  the  present,  the  tone  of  his 
mind, — the  sensations  awakened  in  his  soul,  will  be 
found  to  be  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  giandeur  and 
beauty  of  the  glorious  scene  which  surrounds  him. 


is  re- 


ii: 


•;1 


44 


TOUR   TO    PENNSYLVANIA. 


Ciur.  Ill* 


CHAPTER  III. 

Tour  from  the  Niagara  to  the  Northern  Frontier  of  Pennsylvania. — 
Ancient  Gijpaiferous  Formation  of  New  York. — Fossil  Mastodon 
at  Geneseo. — Scenery. — Sudden  Growth  of  New  Towns. — Coal  of 
Blossbcrg,  and  resemblance  to  British  Coal  Measures. — Stigma- 
ria. — Humming  Birds. — Nomenclature  of  Places. — Heldcrlierg 
Mountains  and  Fossils. — Refractory  Tenants. — Travelling  in  the 
States. — Politeness  to  Women. — Canal-boat. — Domestic  Service. — 
Progress  of  Civilization. — Philadelphia. — Fire-engines. 

Sept.  2.  1841. — From  Niagara  Falls  we  travelled  to 
the  large  town  of  BulTalo,  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Erie, 
and  then  passed  through  Williamsville,  Le  Roy,  and 
Geneseo,  in  the  State  of  New  York.  The  horizontal 
Silurian  rocks  of  this  region  are  in  general  extremely 
like  those  of  conesponding  age  in  Europe,  consisting  of 
mud-stones  and  limestone,  with  similar  corals  and  shells. 
But  there  is  one  remarkahle  exception ; — the  occur- 
rence in  the  middle  of  the  series  of  a  formation  of  red, 
green,  and  bluish  grey  marls  with  beds  of  gypsum, 
and  occasional  salt-springs,  the  whole  being  from  800  to 
1,000  feet  thick,  and  undistinguishable  in  mineral  cha- 
racter from  parts  of  the  Upper  New  Red  or  Trias  of 
Europe.  Near  Le  Roy  I  saw  these  marls  and  the  gyp- 
sum exposed  to  view  in  quarries.  In  the  overlying  hme- 
stone  at  Williamsville  were  large  masses  of  corals,  of 
the  genera  Favosites,  Cystiphyllum,  and  others,  in 
the  position  in  which  they  grew.  Some  of  the  species 
agree  with  British  fossils,  but  the  greater  part  of  them, 
as  I  may  slate  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Lonsdale,  who 
has  studied  my  specimens,  are  distinct. 


¥ 


IIAP.    Ill* 


Icania. — ■ 
\Iaatodon 
-Cual  of 
■Stigma- 
eldcrberg 
tig  in  the 
Service. — 

t  elled  to 
kc  Erie, 
loy,  and 
oiizontal 
xtremely 
sisting  of 
id  shells, 
le  occur- 
n  of  red, 
gypsum, 
m  800  to 
leral  cha- 
Trias  of 
the  gyp- 
ing  lime- 
corals,  of 
others,  in 
le  species 
t  of  them, 
dale,  who 


Chap.  m.       FOSSIL   MASTODON    AT    OKNKSEO.  45 

When  at  the  viliaj^t!  i)f  Tioneseo.  I  learnt  that  ten 
years  before,  tlie  bones  of  u  iMastodon  had  liccn  ob- 
tained from  a  bojj  in  the  nciirhbourhood.  and  I  was  de- 
sirous  of  knowing  ^\'helher  any  sliells  accompanied  the 
bones,  and  whether  they  were  of  recent  species.  Mr. 
Hall  and  I  therefore  procured  workmen,  who  were  soon 
joined  by  several  amateurs  of  Gcneseo,  and  a  pit  was  dug 
to  the  depth  of  about  five  feet  from  the  surface.  Here 
w^e  came  down  upon  a  bed  of  white  shell-marl  and 
sand,  in  which  lay  portions  of  the  skull,  ivory  tusk,  and 
vertebra^,  of  the  extinct  quadruped.  The  shells  proved 
to  be  all  of  existing  freshwater  and  land  species  now 
common  in  this  district.  I  had  been  told  that  the  Mas- 
todon's teeth  were  taken  out  of  muck,  or  the  black  su- 
perficial peaty  earth  of  this  bog.  I  was  therefore  glad 
to  ascertain  that  it  was  really  buried  in  the  shell-marl 
below  the  peat,  and  therefore  agreed  in  situation  with 
the  large  fossil  elks  of  Ireland,  which,  though  often  said 
to  occur  in  peat,  arc  in  fact  met  with  in  subjacent  beds 
of  marl. 

At  the  Falls  of  Le  Roy,  and  at  the  Upper  Falls  of 
the  River  Genesee  at  Portage,  I  liad  opportunities  of 
observing  how  both  of  these  cascades  have  been  cutting 
their  way  backwards  through  the  Sihirian  rocks,  even 
within  the  memory  of  the  present  settlers.  They 
have  each  hollowed  out  a  deep  ravine  with  perpendic- 
ular sides,  bearing  the  same  proportion  in  volume  to 
the  body  of  water  flowing  through  them  which  the 
great  ravine  of  the  Niagara  docs  to  that  river. 

Mr.  Hall  took  leave  of  us  at  Geneseo,  after  which  I 
set  out  on  a  tour  to  examine  the  seiies  of  rocks  between 
the  upper  Silurian  strata  of  the  State  of  New  York 
and  the  Coal  of  Pennsylvania.    With  this  view  I  took 


III 


n<  I 


46 


AMF.IUr.W    DUlVr.ll?!. 


CirAP.  111. 


the  direction  of  Hlosslinj;,  where  tiu;  nuwt  noithcrn 
coal  mines  of  the  l.'niled  St!it(;.s  an;  worked. 

On  thii^  ocvasion  we  left  (lie  ntain  road,  and  entered, 
for  the  lust  time,  an  American  sta^^e-coach,  havinjij 
been  warned  not  to  raise  our  I'X jactations  too  hi^h  in 
ren^ard  to  the  ease  or  bjx'ed  of  our  conv(!yance.  Ac- 
cordingly, we  found  that  after  much  fatij^ue,  we  had 
only  accomplished  a  journey  of  40  miles  in  12  hours, 
between  Genescoand  Dansville.  We  had  four  horses  ; 
and  when  I  complained  at  one  of  the  inns  that  oiu* 
coachman  seemed  to  take  pleasure  in  driving  rapidly 
over  deep  ruts  and  the  roughest  ground,  it  was  ex- 
plained to  me  that  this  was  the  lirst  time  in  his  life  he 
had  ever  attempted  to  drive  any  vehicle,  whether  two 
or  four-wlu.'eled.  The  coolness  and  confidence  with 
which  every  one  here  is  ready  to  try  his  hand  at  any 
craft  is  tridy  amusing.  A  few  days  afterwards  1  en- 
gaged a  young  man  to  drive  me  in  a  gig  from  ^I'ioga 
to  Blossberg.  On  the  way,  he  pointed  out,  first,  his 
father's  property,  and  then  a  farm  of  his  own,  which 
he  had  lately  purchased.  As  he  was  not  yet  twertty 
years  of  age,  I  expressed  surprise  that  he  had  got  on  so 
A\ell  in  the  Avorld,  when  he  told  me  that  he  had  been 
editor  of  the  "  Tioga  Democrat''  for  several  years,  but 
had  now  sold  his  share  of  the  newspaper. 

In  the  region  between  Lake  Erie  and  the  borders  of 
Pennsylvania,  as  well  as  in  that  innnediately  south  of 
Lake  Ontario,  there  is  an  entire  want  of  fine  scenery, 
as  might  have  been  anticipated  where  all  the  strata  are 
horizontal.  The  monotony  of  the  endless  forest  is 
sometimes  relieved  by  a  steep  escarpment,  a  river  with 
wooded  islands,  or  a  lake  ;  but  the  only  striking  fea- 
tures in  the  landscape  are  the  waterfalls,  and  the  deep 


^1 


tAP.  III. 

ithcru 

Uoretl, 

mvinff 

igli  ill 

.     Ac- 

\c  Imd 

houri», 

iiorscs ; 

uit  om- 

rnpklly 

vas  c\- 

i  life  be 

her  two 

ce  witli 
at  any 

ids  1  eu- 

n  Tiosn. 

first,  liH 
Avhioh 
twenty 

iTot  on  i^o 

ad  been 

ears,  but 

lordcrs  of 
south  of 

scenery, 
itmta  are 

forest  is 
iver  with 
king  fea- 

the  deep 


ClIAP.  III. 


FOSSir.    RE.MAI\i=<    OF    I'lSII. 


47 


chasms  hollowed  out  by  iheni  in  the  rourno  of  ages. 
As  the  op[K)sitf!  hanks  of  (lie-e  ravines  ixw.  on  the  same 
level,  inchKhng  that  «)f  the  Niajj^ara  itself,  we  come  ab- 
ruptly to  their  edges  before  we  have  any  suspicion  of 
their  existence,  and  wc  niudt  travel  out  of  our  way  to 
enjoy  a  sight  of  them. 

At  length  we  reached  the  waler-Hhed,  where  the 
streams  ilow,  on  one  side,  northwards  to  Lake  On- 
tario, and  on  the  other,  (Southwards,  to  the  Susque- 
hanna. I  began  to  wonder  how  the  Indians  ever  ob- 
tained any  correct  notions  of  topography  in  so  continu- 
ous a  forest,  all  the  smaller  rivers,  with  their  islands, 
being  embowered  and  choked  up  with  trees.  I  soon 
ceased  to  repine  at  the  havoc  that  was  going  on  in  the 
fine  timber  which  bounded  our  road  on  every  side. 

After  traversing  successive  zones  of  the  Upper  Silu- 
rian strata,  I  at  length  entered  at  Bath  upon  the  olive- 
coloured  slates  and  grey  sandstone,  which  seem  to  be 
the  equivalent  of  the  lower  part  of  the  Old  Red,  or 
Devonian  of  England.  In  this  rock  some  streaks  of 
carbonaceous  matter,  which  soon  thin  out,  and  are 
rarely  three  inches  thick,  are  met  with.  I  found  a  pro- 
prietor on  Spalding's  Creek  preparing  to  sink  a  costly 
shaft  for  coal,  and  I  earnestly  dissuaded  him  from  his 
project,  referring  him  to  the  New  York  survey.  Every 
scientific  man  who  discourages  a  favourite  mining 
scheme  must  make  up  his  mind  to  be  as  ill  received  as 
the  physician  who  gives  an  honest  opinion  that  his  pa- 
tient's disorder  is  incurable. 

After  the  Olive  Slate,  I  came  to  an  incumbent  for- 
mation of  red  sandstone  near  Tioga,  and  collected  fish 
of  two  species  of  Holopiichius,  one  apparently  identi- 
cal with  H.  nobilissimus,  a  fossil  of  the  British  Old 


i,  :   :i= 


Kf- 


48 


SUDDEN  GROWTH  01'  NKAV  TOWNS.      Chap.  hi. 


Red,  and  anollior  which,  I  learn  from  Sir  Phihp  Eger- 


!    I 


ton,  belc 


to 


entirely 


of  th 


new  type  or  tnis  genus. 
With  these  were  a  species  of  Clielonicthys  of  large  di- 
mensions, a  form  also  very  characteristic  of  the  same 
formation  both  in  Russia  and  Scotland. 

Sept.  5. — At  Bath  I  hired  a  private  carriage  for 
Corning.  Although  there  arc  two  railways  here  with 
locomotive  engines,  one  leading  to  the  south,  the  other 
for  conveying  the  coal  of  Blossbcrg  to  the  Erie  canal,  I 
looked  in  vain  for  the  name  of  Corning  iii  a  newly- 
published  map,  and  was  informed  that  the  town  was 
only  two  years  old.  Already  the  school-house  was  fin- 
ished, the  spire  of  the  Methodist  church  nearly  com- 
plete, the  Presbyterian  one  in  the  course  of  building, 
the  site  of  the  Episcopalian  decided  on.  Wishing  to 
have  a  carriage,  1  was  taken  to  a  large  livery  stable, 
where  there  were  several  vehicles  and  good  horses. 
The  stumps  of  trees,  some  six  feet  high,  are  still  stand- 
ing in  the  gardens  and  between  the  houses.  Our  inn- 
keeper remarked  that  the  cost  of  uprooting  them  would 
be  nearly  equal  to  that  of  erecting  a  log-house  on  the 
same  place.  I  amused  myself  by  counting  the  rings 
of  annual  growth  in  these  trees,  and  found  that  some 
had  been  only  forty  years  old  when  cut  down,  yet  when 
these  began  to  grow,  no  white  man  had  approached 
within  many  leagues  of  this  valley  ;  most  of  the  older 
stumps  went  back  no  farther  than  two  centuries,  or  to 
the  landing  of  the  pilgrim  fathers,  some  few  to  the  time 
of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  scarcely  one  to  the  days  of 
Columljus.  I  had  before  remarked  that  very  ancient 
trees  seemed  unconnnon  in  the  aboriginal  forests  of  this 
part  of  America.  They  are  usually  tall  and  straight, 
with  no  grass  growing  under  their  dark  shade,  although 


AP.    HI- 


Egcr- 
renus. 
•go  (li- 
;  same 


o-c  for 
e  with 
3  other 
anal,  I 
iicwly- 
vn  wa3 
vas  ful- 
ly com- 
uilding, 
hing  to 
f  stable, 

horses. 
II  stand- 
3ur  inn- 
n  would 
;  on  the 
lie  rings 
lat  some 
ret  when 

iioached 
[the  older 
les,  or  to 

I  the  time 
days  of 
ancient 

^Is  of  this 
straight, 

I  although 


ClIAF.   III. 


COAL    OP   BLOSSBERG. 


49 


the  green  herbage  soon  springs  up  when  the  wood  is 
removed  and  the  sun's  rays  allowed  to  penetrate. 
Some  of  the  stumps,  especially  those  of  the  fir  tribe, 
take  fifty  years  to  rot  away,  though  exposed  in  the  air 
to  alternations  of  rain  and  sunshine,  a  fact  on  which 
every  geologist  will  do  well  to  reflect,  for  it  is  clear  that 
the  trees  of  a  forest  submerged  beneath  the  waters,  or 
still  more,  if  entirely  excluded  from  air,  by  becoming 
imbedded  in  sediment,  maj-  endure  for  centuries 
without  decay,  so  that  there  may  have  been  ample 
time  for  the  slow  petrifaction  of  erect  fossil  trees  in  the 
Carboniferous  and  other  formations,  or  for  the  slow  ac- 
cmnulation  around  them  of  a  groat  succession  of  strata. 

I  asked  the  landlord  of  the  inn  at  Corning,  who  was 
very  attentive  to  his  guests,  to  find  my  coachman.  He 
immediately  called  out  in  his  bar-room,  "  Where  is  the 
gentleman  that  brought  this  man  here  ?"  A  few  days 
before,  a  farmer  in  New  York  had  styled  my  wife  "  the 
woman,"  though  he  called  his  own  daughters  ladies, 
and  would,  I  believe,  have  freely  extended  that  title  to 
their  maid-servant.  I  was  told  of  a  witness  in  a  late 
trial  at  Boston,  who  stated  in  evidence  that  "while  he 
and  another  gentleman  were  shovelling  up  mud,"  «&c. ; 
from  which  it  appears  that  the  spirit  of  social  equality 
has  left  no  other  signification  to  the  terms  "  gefitle- 
man  "  and  '•  lady  "  but  that  of  "  male  and  female  in- 
dividual." 

/Sept.  7.  Blossherg. — I  had  now  entered  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  reached  one  of  the  extreme  north-eastern 
outliers  of  the  great  Appalachian  coal-field,  as  Professor 
Rogers  has  termed  the  Coal-measures  of  Pennsylvania, 
Ohio,  rmd  Virginia.  It  was  the  first  time  I  had  seen 
tlie  true  "  Coal "  in  America,  and  I  was  much  struck 

5 


h^ 


% 


60 


STIGMARIA. 


ClIAF.   lit. 


I' 

Pi'! 


with  its  surprising  analogy  in  mineral  and  fossil  char- 
acters to  that  of  Europe — the  same  white  grits  or  sand- 
stones as  are  used  for  building  near  Edinburgh  and 
Isc-.vcastlc — similar  black  shales,  often  bituminous,  with 
the  leaves  of  ferns  spread  out  as  in  an  lieriiarium,  the 
species  being  for  the  most  part  identical  with  British 
fossil  plants — seams  of  good  bituminous  coal,  some  a 
fev/  inches,  others  several  yards  in  thickness— beds  and 
nodules  of  clay  iron-stone  ;  and  the  whole  series  resting 
on  a  coarse  grit  and  conglomerate,  containing  quartz 
pebbles,  very  Uke  our  jMillslone  CJrit,  and  often  called 
by  the  American  as  well  as  the  English  miners  the 
"  Farev.ell  Rock,''  because  v, hen  they  have  reached  it 
in  their  borings,  they  take  lca\e  of  all  valuable  fuel. 
Beneath  this  grit  are  those  red  and  grey  sandstones  al- 
ready alluded  to  as  corresponding  in  mineral  character, 
fossils,  and  position,  with  our  '•  Old  lied." 

I  Vt'as  desirous  of  ascertaining  whether  a  generalisa- 
tion recently  made  by  Mr.  Logan  in  South  Wales  could 
hold  good  in  this  country.  Each  of  tiie  Welsh  seams 
of  coal,  more  than  ninety  in  number,  have  been  found 
to  rest  on  a  sandy  clay  or  firestone,  in  which  a  peculiar 
species  of  plant  called  Stigmaria  abounds,  to  the  ex- 
clusion of  all  others.  I  saw  the  Stigmaria  at  Bloss- 
bei*^,  lying  in  abundance  in  the  heaps  of  rubbish  where 
coal  had  been  extracted  from  a  horizontal  scam.  Dr. 
Saynisch,  president  of  the  mine,  kindly  lighted  up  the 
gallery  that  I  might  inspect  the  works,  and  we  saw  the 
black  shales  in  the  roof,  adorned  with  beautifid  fern 
leaves,  wliile  the  floor  consisted  of  an  under-clay,  in 
which  the  stems  of  Si,igmaria,  with  their  leaves  or 
rootlets  attached,  were  running  in  all  directions.  The 
agreement  of  these  phenomena  with  those  of  the  Welsh 


HAP.    !"• 

I  char- 
r  sand- 
t]\  and 
IS,  with 
ml,  the 
Britisli 
some  a 
cdrf  and 
;  resting 
r  quartz 
u  called 
iievs  the 
ached  it 
ible  fuel, 
stones  al- 
iharacter, 

■neralisa- 
iles  could 
ill  seams 
sen  found 
peculiar 
[o  the  ex- 
at  Bloss- 
A:i\\  where 
jam.     Dr. 
ed  up  the 
e  saw  the 
itiful  fern 
■r-clay,  in 
leaves  or 
)ns.    The 
the  Welsh 


Chap.  in. 


HUMMING-BIRDS. 


51 


Coal-measures,  3000  miles  distant,  surprised  me,  and 
lead  to  conclusions  respecting  the  origin  of  coal  from 
plants  not  drifted,  but  growing  on  the  spot,  to  which  I 
shall  refer  in  the  sequel. 

Dr.  Saynisch,  wlio  was  the  first  to  explore  the  coal 
in  this  region,  told  me  that,  soon  after  he  settled  liere, 
he  shot  a  wolf  out  of  liis  bedroom  window.  These 
animals  still  commit  liavoc  on  the  Hocks,  and  last  au- 
tumn a  large  panther  was  killed  in  the  outskirts  of 
Blossberg,  but  the  bears  have  not  been  seen  for  several 
years.  We  rode  in  a  hot  sunny  day  to  a  large  clearing 
in  the  forest  far  from  any  habitation,  and  I  was  struck 
with  tlie  perfect  silence  of  the  surrounding  woods.  We 
heard  no  call  or  note  of  any  bird,  nothing  to  remind  us 
of  the  chirping  of  the  chailiuch  or  autunmal  song  of 
our  robin,  the  grasshoppers  and  crickets  alone  keeping 
up  a  ceaseless  din  day  and  niglit.  The  birds  here  are 
very  abundant,  and  some  are  adorned  with  brilliant 
plumage,  as  the  large  woodpecker,  with  its  crimson 
head, — the  yellow-bird  {Fringilla  trisiis),  of  the  size 
of  a  yellow-hammer,  w".ih  black  wings  and  a  bright 
yellow  body, — the  red-blvd  {Tanagra  rwirw),— and 
the  Loxia  ludovisiana. 

A  hen  humming-bird,  far  les^s  brilliant  in  its  plumage 
than  the  male.  Hew  within  i.  few  inches  of  my  face. 
Its  flight  and  diminutive  size  reminded  me  of  our  hum- 
ming sphinx,  or  hawk-moth,  like  which  it  remains 
poised  in  the  air  while  sucking  the  flowers,  the  body 
seeming  motionless,  and  the  wings  being  invi^able  from 
the  swiftness  of  their  vibrations.  I  had  before  seen  one 
in  the  wood  at  Cedarville,  sucking  the  flower  of  a  wild 
balsam  {Impatiens  hijiora).  Dr.  Saynisch  tells  me 
that  on  his  first  visit  to  these  woods,  he  has  known  two 


li^l 


62 


TAMENESS    OF*    WILD   ANIMALS.         CnAP.  ill. 


of  these  birds  at  a  time  perch  on  the  edge  of  a  cup 
of  water  which  he  held  in  liis  hand,  and  drink  without 
fear.  I  was  aware  from  Mr.  Darwin's  Vo3'age  in  the 
Beagle,  that  in  islands  like  the  Galapagos, 

"  Where  human  foot  hath  ne'er  or  rarely  been," 

the  wild  birds  have  no  apprehension  of  danger  from 
man  ;  but  here,  where  for  ages  the  Indian  hunters  pre- 
ceded the  whites,  1  am  surprised  to  learn  that  an  in- 
stinctive dread  of  the  great  "  usurper  "  had  not  become 
hereditary  in  the  feathered  tribe.  I  was  told,  however, 
that  in  tlie  hunting  grounds  called  Indian  Reservations, 
within  the  limits  of  the  settled  and  civilised  states,  of 
which  we  passed  one  in  New  York,  the  wild  animals  are 
comparatively  tame,  it  being  a  system  of  the  Indians 
never  to  molest  the  game  or  their  prey,  except  when  re- 
quired for  food. 

We  returned  from  Blossberg  by  the  town  of  Jeffer- 
son, and,  sailing  down  Seneca  Lake  in  a  steamboat  to 
Geneva,  joined  the  railway,  which  carried  us  back 
again  to  Albany.  At  one  of  the  stations  where  the 
train  stopped  we  overheard  some  young  women  from 
Ohio  exclaim,  "  Well,  we  are  in  a  pretty  fix !"  and 
found  their  dilemma  to  be  characteristic  of  the  financial 
crisis  of  these  times,  for  none  of  their  dollar  notes  of  the 
Ohio  banks  would  pass  here.  The  substantive  "  fix  " 
is  an  acknowledged  vulgarism,  but  the  verb  is  used  in 
New  England  by  well-educated  people,  in  the  sense  of 
the  French  "  arranger  "  or  the  English  "  do."  To  fix 
the  hair,  the  table,  the  fire,  means  to  dress  the  hair,  lay 
the  table,  and  make  up  the  fire  ;  and  this  application 
is,  I  presume,  of  Hibernian  origin,  as  an  Irish  gentle- 
man, King  Corney,  in  Miss  Edgeworth's  tale  of  Or- 
mond,  says,  "  I'll  fix  him  and  his  wounds." 


m 


Chap.  hi. 

[  a  cup 
without 
e  in  the 


;er  from 
teis  pre- 
t  an  in- 
:  become 
liowever, 
rvations, 
states,  of 
imals  are 
B  Indians 
when  re- 

of  Jefler- 
imboat  to 
us  back 
ft'here  the 
men  from 
fix!"  and 
e  financial 
otes  of  the 
live  "fix" 
is  used  in 
le  sense  of 
."    To  fix 
le  hair,  lay 
appUcation 
ish  gentle- 
tale  of  Or- 


ClIAP.    III. 


NOMENCLATURE    OF   PLACES. 


63 


There  are  scarcely  any  American  idioms  or  words 
which  arc  not  of  Jiritish  origin,  some  obsolete,  others 
provincial.  Wlien  the  lexicographer,  Noah  Web^itcr, 
whom  I  saw  at  New  Haven,  was  asked  how  many 
new  words  he  had  coined,  lie  replied  one  only  "to  de- 
moralize," and  that  not  lor  his  dictionary,  but  long  be- 
fore, in  a  pamphlet  published  in  the  last  century. 

The  nomenclature  of  the  places  passed  through  in 
our  short  excursion  of  one  month  was  strange  enough. 
We  had  been  at  Syracuse,  Utica,  Rome,  and  Parma, 
had  gone  from  Bullalo  to  Batavia,  and  on  the  same 
day  breakfasted  at  St.  Helena,  and  dined  at  Elba.  We 
collected  fossils  at  Moscow,  and  travelled  by  Painted 
Post  and  Big  Flats  to  Havanna.  After  returning  by 
Auburn  to  Albany,  I  was  taken  to  Troy,  a  city  of 
20,000  inhabitants,  that  I  might  see  a  curious  landslip 
which  had  just  happened  on  Mount  Olympus,  the 
western  side  of  that  hill,  together  with  a  contiguous* 
portion  of  Mount  Ida,  having  slid  down  into  the  Hud- 
son, and  caused  the  death  of  several  persons.  Fortu- 
nately, some  few  of  the  Indian  names,  such  as  Mohawk, 
Ontario,  Oneida,  Canandaigua,  and  Niagara,  are  re- 
tained. Although  legislative  interference  in  behalf  of 
good  taste  would  not  be  justifiable,  Congress  might  in- 
terpose for  the  sake  of  the  post-office,  and  prevent  the 
future  multiplication  of  the  same  names  for  villages, 
cities,  counties,  and  townships.  That  more  than  a 
hundred  places  should  be  called  Washington  is  an  in- 
tolerable nuisance.  An  Englishman,  it  is  true,  cannot 
complain,  for  we  follow  the  same  system  in  our  colonies  ; 
and  it  is  high  time  that  the  postmaster-general  brought 
in  a  bill  for  prohibiting  new  streets  in  London  from  re- 
ceiving names  already  appropriated  and  repeated  ^/y 


'  n 


yii'' 


!il 


!'' 


aii 


iii 


54 


HELDEllBERG    MOUNTAINS. 


ClIAF.  lit. 


times  in  that  same  city,  to  the  infinite  confusion  of  the 
inhabitants  and  their  Ictter-cariieis. 

At  Troy  I  xis^ited  Professor  Eaton,  who  pubhshed  izi 
1821,  in  his  '-Survey  of  the  Erie  Canal,"  the  earliest 
account  of  the  Niagara  district,  dividing  the  rocks  into 
groups,  nearly  all  of  which  have  been  since  adopted 
by  the  New  York  surveyors.  The  mind  of  this  pio- 
neer in  American  geology  was  still  in  fidl  activity,  and 
his  i!eal  unabated  ;  but  a  few  months  after  my  visit  he 
died  at  an  advanced  age. 

I  next  examined,  in  company  with  Mr.  Hall,  two 
swamps,  situated  in  Albany  and  Greene  counties,  west 
of  the  Hudson  river,  where  the  remains  of  a  Mastodon 
occurred,  in  both  places  at  the  depth  of  four  or  live 
feet,  in  shell-marl,  with  recent  species  of  shells.  These 
deposits  of  marl  covered  with  peat  are  newer  than  the 
boulder  formation,  and  cattle  have  very  lately  been 
mired  in  the  same  bogs.  In  similar  situations  in  Scot- 
land and  England  we  find  only  the  remains  of  existing 
mammaha ;  and  although  ou  the  banks  of  the  Thames 
and  elsewhere  we  discover  the  bones  of  the  extinct 
elephant  and  rhinoceros  associated  with  recent  land 
and  freshwater  shells  (mingled,  however,  with  some 
few  exotic  species),  the  strata  in  which  they  lie  do  not 
belong  precisely,  like  those  in  New  York,  to  the  most 
modern  geographical  condition  of  the  country. 

We  then  made  a  tour  to  the  Helderberg  Mountains, 
S.  W.  of  Albany,  to  see  the  Upper  Silurian  strata,  and 
to  study  their  fossils  in  the  museum  of  Mr.  Gebhard  at 
Schoharie.  The  depth  of  the  valleys,  and  some  precip- 
itous clifls  of  limestone,  render  this  region  more  pic- 
turesque than  is  usual  where  the  strata  are  undisturbed. 
I  rejoiced  to  see  the  sugar-maple  {Acer  saccharinus), 


100,01 
Rens^ 


M 


HAP.   «!• 

of  the 

4llC(l  ill 

earliest 
;ks  into 
idoptcd 
liis  pio- 
ity,  and 
visit  he 

[all,  two 
les,  west 
lastodou 
:  or  live 
.    These 
than  the 
ely  been 
in  Scot- 
■  existing 
Thames 
e  extinct 
;ent  land 
ith  some 
ie  do  not 
the  most 

ountains, 
Lrata,  and 
ebhard  at 
lie  prccip- 
iriore  pic- 
idisturbed. 
'Jiarinus), 


Chaf.  III. 


REFRACTORY    TENANTS. 


55 


an  ornamental  tree,  spared  in  the  new  clearings.  The 
sap  from  which  sugar  is  made  was  everywhere  trick- 
ling down  into  woodoi  troughs  from  gashes  made  in 
the  bark.  Tiie  red  maples  were  now  beginning  to  as- 
sume their  bright  autumnal  tints,  but  the  rest  of  the 
forest  was  as  verdant  a -i  ever ;  a  blue  Lobelia,  which 
we  had  gathered  at  the  Falls  of  ^Niagara,  was  still  in 
bloom,  together  with  many  white  and  blue  asters  which 
had  only  just  come  out.  The  most  elegant  flower  in 
the  woods  at  this  season  is  the  fringed  gentian  {Gen- 
tiana  crinita). 

"  Bright  with  Autumn  dew,  i 


And  colour'd  with  tiie  Ileaven'a  own  blue." 

One  day  at  Schoharie,  a  hawk  pounced  down  from' 
a  lofty  tree,  and  seized  a  striped  squirrel  on  the  ground, 
wuthin  three  yards  of  our  part3^  It  was  bearing  off 
its  burden  with  ease,  imtil,  alarmed  by  our  shouts,  it 
dropped  the  squirrel,  which  ran  off  apparently  unhurt. 
I  observed  early  in  the  morning  myriads  of  cobwebs 
extending  from  one  blade  of  grass  to  another,  as  we 
often  see  them  on  an  English  lawn  before  the  dew  is 
dried  up. 

On  our  way  back  from  Schoharie  to  Albany,  we 
found  the  coimti  7  people  in  a  ferment,  a  sheriff's  oflicer 
having  been  seriously  wounded  when  in  the  act  of  dis- 
training for  rent,  this  being  the  third  year  of  the  "  Hel- 
derlierg  war,"  or  a  successful  resistance  by  an  armed 
tenantry  to  the  legal  demands  of  their  landlord,  Mr. 
Van  Renssalaer.  It  appears  that  a  large  amount  of 
territory  on  both  sides  of  the  river  Hudson,  now  sup- 
porting, according  to  some  estimates,  a  population  of 
100,000  souls,  had  long  been  held  in  fee  by  the  Van 
Renssalaer  family,  the  tenants  paying  a  small  ground 


IV 


*'^ 


V- V 


v\ 


\ 


A- 


66 


\ 


REFRACTORY   TENANTS. 


Chaf.  in. 


rent.  This  system  of  thini^s  is  regarded  by  many  as 
not  only  injurious,  because  it  imposes  grievous  restraintg 
upon  alienation,  but  as  unconstitutional,  or  contrary  to 
the  genius  of  their  political  institutions,  and  tending  to 
create  a  sort  of  feudal  perpetuity.  Some  of  the  leases 
have  already  been  turned  into  fees,  but  many  of  tlie 
tenants  were  unable  or  unwilling  to  pay  the  prices 
asked  for  such  conveyances,  and  declared  that  they 
had  paid  rent  long  enough,  and  that  it  was  high  time 
that  they  should  be  owners  of  the  land. 

A  few  years  ago,  when  the  estates  descended  from 
the  late  General  Van  Renssalaer  to  his  sons,  the  at- 
tempt to  enforce  the  landlord's  rights  met  with  open 
opposition.  The  courts  of  law  gave  judgment,  and  the 
sheriti'  of  Albany  having  failed  to  execute  his  process, 
at  length  took  miUtary  force  in  1839,  but  with  no  bet- 
ter success.  The  governor  of  New  York  was  then 
compelled  to  back  him  with  the  military  array  of  the 
state,  about  700  men,  who  began  the  campaign  at  a 
day's  notice  in  a  severe  snow  storm.  The  tenants  are 
said  to  have  mustered  against  them  1500  strong,  and 
the  rents  were  still  unpaid,  when  in  the  following  year, 
1840,  the  governor,  courting  popularity,  as  it  should 
seem,  while  condemning  the  recusants  in  his  message, 
virtually  encouraged  them  by  recommending  their  case 
to  the  favourable  consideration  of  the  state,  hinting  at 
the  same  time  at  legislative  remedies.  The  legislature, 
however,  to  their  credit,  refused  to  enact  these,  leaving 
the  case  to  the  ordinary  courts  of  law. 

The  whole  affair  is  curious,  as  demonstrating  the 
impossibility  of  creating  at  present  in  this  country  a 
class  of  landed  proprietors  deriving  their  income  from 
the  letting  of  lands  upon  lease.     Every  man  must  oc- 


[AP.  in. 

iiy  a9 
raiul3 
.\iy  to 
ing  to 
leases 
of  the 
prices 
t  they 
h  time 

d  from 
the  at- 
h  open 
ind  the 
process, 
no  bet- 
as then 
f  of  the 
jn  at  a 
ints  are 
ing,  and 
year, 
should 


1<T 


lessage, 

heir  case 

jilting  at 

[islature, 

leaving 

|ting  the 

)untry  a 

le  from 

Inust  oc- 


Chap.  hi, 


y7  /r/  r     ^^^-^t/^^ 


POLITENESS   TO    WOMEN 


^ 


57 


cupy  his  own  acres.  He  who  has  capital  enough  to 
stock  a  farm  can  obtain  land  of  his  own  so  cheap  aa 
naturally  to  prefer  b«Miig  his  own  landlord. 

Sei^.  27.  1841. — We  embarked  once  more  on  the 
Hudson,  to  sail  from  Albany  to  New  York,  with  several 
hundred  passengers  on  l)oard,  and  thought  the  scenery 
more  beautifid  than  ever.  The  steam-boat  is  a  great 
floating  hotel,  of  which  the  captain  is  landlord.  He 
presides  at  meals,  taking  care  that  no  gentl(Mncn  take 
tlieir  places  at  table  till  all  the  ladies,  or,  as  we  should 
say  in  England,  the  women  of  every  class,  are  first 
seated.  The  men,  by  whom  they  are  accompanied, 
are  then  invited  to  join  them,  after  which,  at  the  sound 
of  a  bell,  the  bachelors  and  married  men  travelling  cji 
garfon  pour  into  the  saloon,  in  much  the  same  style  as 
members  of  the  House  of  Commons  rush  into  the  Up- 
per House  to  hear  a  speech  from  the  throne. 

One  of  the  first  peculiarities  that  must  strike  a  for- 
eigner in  the  United  States  is  the  deference  paid  uni- 
versally to  the  sex,  without  regard  to  station.  Women 
may  travel  alone  here  in  stage-coaches,  steam-boats, 
and  railways,  with  less  risk  of  encountering  disagreeable 
behaviour,  and  of  hearing  coarse  and  unpleasant  con- 
versation, than  in  any  country  I  have  ever  visited. 
The  contrast  in  this  respect  between  the  Americans 
and  the  French  is  quite  remarkable.  There  is  a  spirit 
of  true  gallantry  in  all  this,  but  the  publicity  of  the 
railway  car,  where  all  are  in  one  long  room,  and  of  the 
large  ordinaries,  whether  on  land  or  water,  is  a  great 
protection,  the  want  of  which  has  been  felt  by  many  a 
female  traveller  without  escort  in  England.  As  the 
Americans  address  no  conversation  to  strangers,  we 
soon  became  tolerably  reconciled  to  living  so  much  in 


/•^ 


'II? '"'.      I 


08 


CANAL-BOAT. 


Chap.  hi. 


public.  Our  fcllow-paHscugors  coiiisisted  for  the  most 
part  of  shopkocpors,  arti/ann,  ami  mechanics,  with  their 
families,  all  \\  ell-dressed,  anil  so  far  as  we  had  inter- 
courrio  with  them,  [lulito  and  d(!sirou.s  to  please.  A 
large  [)art  of  them  were  on  pleasure  excursions,  in 
which  they  delight  to  spend  their  spare  cash. 

On  one  or  two  occasions  during  our  late  tour  in  the 
newly-settled  districts  of  New  York,  it  was  intimated 
to  us  that  we  were  expected  to  sit  down  to  dinner  with 
our  driver,  usually  the  son  or  brother  of  the  farmer  who 
owned  our  vehicle.  We  were  invariably  struck  with 
the  propriety  of  their  manners,  in  which  there  was  self- 
respect  without  forwardness.  The  only  disagreeable  ad- 
venture in  the  way  of  coming  into  close  contact  with  low 
and  coarse  companions,  arose  from  my  taking  places  in  a 
cheap  canal-boat  near  Lockport,  partly  filled  with  emi- 
grants, and  corresponding  somewhat  in  the  rank  of  its 
passengers  with  a  third-class  railway-carriage  in  Eng- 
land. "  due  diable  allait-il  faire  dans  cette  galere  ?" 
would  have  been  a  dilficult  question  for  me  to  answer, 
especially  as  I  afterwards  learnt  that  I  might  have 
hired  a  good  private  carriage  at  the  very  place  where  I 
embarked.  This  convenience  indeed,  although  there 
is  no  posting,  I  invariably  found  at  my  command  in 
all  the  states  of  the  Union,  both  northern  and  southern, 
which  I  visited  during  my  stay  in  America. 

Travellers  must  make  up  their  minds,  in  this  as  in 
other  countries,  to  fall  in  now  and  then  with  free  and 
easy  people.  I  am  bound,  however,  to  say  that  in  the 
two  most  glaring  instances  of  vulgar  familiarity  which 
we  have  experienced  here,  we  found  out  that  both  the 
offenders  had  crossed  the  Atlantic  only  ten  years  before, 
and  had  risen  rapidly  from  a  humble  station.     What- 


'i 


Chap.  iu. 


PROGRESS   OF    CIVILIZATION. 


50 


s  as  in 
ee  and 
in  the 
Avhich 
)oth  the 
before, 
What- 


ever  jrood  breeding  exists  hero  in  the  middle  classes  is 

and  John  Bull, 


certainly  not  of  foreign  iinpor 
in  par  tic 


ilion 
ular,  wlien  out  of  humour  wi 


th  the  manners 


of  the  Americans,  is  often  unconsciou-ly  beholding  his 
own  imnge  in  the  mirror,  or  comparing  one  class  of 
society  in  the  United  .States  with  another  in  his  own 
coimtry,  which  ought,  from  superior  aflluence  and  lei- 
sure, to  exhibit  a  higher  standard  of  refinement  and 
intelligence. 

We  have  now  seen  the  two  largest  cities,  many 
towns  and  villages,  besides  some  of  the  back  settlements, 
of  New  York  and  the  New  England  States ;  an  ex- 
emplification, I  am  told,  of  a  population  amounting  to 
about  five  millions  of  souls.  We  have  met  with  no 
beggars,  witnessed  no  signs  of  want,  but  everywhere 
the  most  uneciuivocal  proofs  of  prosperity  and  rapid 
progress  in  agriculture,  commerce,  and  great  pubUc 
works.  As  these  states  are,  some  of  them,  entirely 
free  from  debt,  and  the  rest  have  punctually  paid  the 
interest  of  Government  loans,  it  would  be  most  luijust 
to  apply  to  them  the  disparaging  comment  '■  that  it  is 
easy  to  go  ahead  with  borrowed  money."  In  spite  of 
the  constant  infiux  of  uneducated  and  pennyless  ad- 
venturers from  Europe,  I  believe  it  would  be  impost^i- 
blc  to  find  five  millions  in  any  other  region  of  the  globe 
whose  average  moral,  social,  and  intellectual  condition 
stands  so  high.  One  convincing  evidence  of  their  well- 
being  has  not,  I  think,  been  suiliciently  dwelt  upon  by 
foreigners :  I  allude  to  the  difliculty  of  obtaining  and 
retaining  young  American  men  and  women  for  a  series 
of  years  in  domestic  service,  an  occupation  by  no  means 
considered  as  degrading  here,  for  they  are  highly  paid, 
and  treated  almost  as  equals.     But  so  long  as  they  en- 


i  i 


60 


PHILADELPHIA. 


Chaf.  III. 


joy  puch  facilities  of  Itcttrrinjir  ♦''fi'"  coiulilion,  and  can 
iimiry  early,  limy  will  nalmally  reuomico  Uiis  borulago 
as  soon  as  possil)I(?.  Tliat  the  few,  or  tlio  opulent 
class,  especially  thu.ie  resjident  in  country  places,  should 
be  put  to  i^reat  inconveiiience  by  lliid  circumstance,  is 
unavoidable,  and  we  uiust  therefore  be  on  our  guard, 
when  endeavouring  to  estimate  the  happiness  of  the 
many,  not  to  symj)athise  too  much  with  this  minority. 

I  am  also  aware  that  the  blessing  alluded  to,  and 
many  others  which  they  enjoy,  belong  to  a  progressive, 
as  contrasted  with  a  stationary,  state  of  society ; — that 
they  characterize  the  new  colony,  where  there  is 
abundance  of  unoccujjied  land,  and  a  ready  outlet  to 
a  redimdant  labouring  class.  They  are  not  the  results 
of  a  democratic,  as  compared  with  a  monarchical  or 
aristocratic  constitution,  nor  the  fruits  of  an  absolute 
equality  of  religious  sects,  still  less  of  universal  sulTrage. 
Nevertheless,  we  must  not  forget  how  easily  all  the  ge- 
ographical advantages  arising  from  climate,  soil,  line 
navigable  rivers,  splendid  harbours,  and  a  wildernesg 
in  the  far  West,  might  have  been  marred  by  other  laws, 
and  other  political  institutions.  Had  Spain  colonized 
this  region,  how  diderent  would  have  been  her  careei 
of  civilisation  !  Had  the  puritan  fathers  landed  on  the 
banks  of  the  Plata,  how  many  hundreds  of  large  steam- 
ers would  ere  this  have  been  plying  the  Parana  and 
Uruguay, — how  many  railway-trains  flying  over  the 
Pampas, — how  many  large  schools  and  universities 
flourishing  in  Paraguay ! 

Sept.  28. — We  next  went  by  railway  from  New 
York  to  Philadelphia  through  the  state  of  New  Jersey. 
Large  fields  of  maize,  without  the  stumps  of  trees  ris- 
ing above  the  corn,  and  villas  with  neat  flower-gardens, 


Chap,  hi, 


FIRE-ENGINES. 


61 


sconiod  a  novrljy  to  us  aftor  llio  oyo  luul  dwell  for  so 
many  ImndivdH  ot"  miles  on  native  forests  and  new 
clearintrs.  The  Hlreets  of  Philadelphia  rival  the  linest 
Duti'h  towns  in  cleMuliiiess,  and  the  heautiful  avenues 
of  various  kinds  of  trees  aflljrd  a  most  welcome  shade 
hi  summer.  We  were  five  days  here,  and  every  ni<j;ht 
there  was  an  idarm  of  lire,  usually  a  false  one  ;  hut 
the  noise  of  the  firemen  was  tremendous.  At  the  head 
of  the  proeession  came  a  runner  hlowin^^  a  horn  with  a 
deep  unearthly  sound,  next  a  long  team  of  men  (for 
no  horses  are  employed)  drawing  a  strong  rope  to  which 
the  j)onderous  engine  was  attached  with  a  large  hell  at 
the  top,  ringing  all  the  way  ;  next  followed  a  moh, 
some  with  torches,  others  shouting  loudly;  and  hefore 
they  were  half  out  of  hearing,  another  engine  follows 
with  a  like  escort;  the  whole  all'air  rcsemhiing  a  scene 
in  Dcr  Preischutz  or  llobtrt  le  Diable,  rather  than 
an  act  in  real  life.  It  is,  however,  no  sham,  for  these 
young  men  are  ready  to  risk  their  lives  in  extinguish- 
ing a  fire  ;  and  as  an  apology  for  their  disturhing  the 
peace  of  the  city  when  there  was  no  cause,  we  were 
told  "  that  the  youth  here  require  excitement ! "  They 
manage  these  matters  as  eirectively  at  Boston  without 
turmoil. 

6 


62 


EXCURSION   TO    NEAV   JERSEY. 


Chap.  iv. 


CHAPTER  [V. 

Excursion  to  New  Jersey. — Cretaceous  Rocks  compared  to  European. 
— General  Analogy  of  Fossils,  and  Distinctness  of  Species. — Tour 
to  the  Anthracite  Region  of  the  Allrghanies  in  Pennsylvania. — 
Long  parallel  Ridges  and  Valleys  of  these  Mountains. — Pottsville. 
~— Absence  of  Smoke. — Fossil  Plants  same  as  in  Bituminous  Coal. 
— Stigmarice. — Great  Thickness  of  Strata. — Origin  of  Anthracite. 
— Vast  Area  of  the  Appalachian  Coal-field. — Progressice  Dehitu- 
minization  of  Coal  from  West  to  East. — General  Remarks  on  the 
different  Groups  of  Rocks  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Missis- 
sippi.— Law  of  Structure  of  the  Appalachian  Chain  discovered  by 
the  Professors  Rogers. — Increased  Folding  and  Dislocation  of 
Strata  on  the  South-eastern  Flank  of  the  Appalachians. — Theory 
of  the  Origin  of  this  Mountain  Chain. 

Crktac'kous  Strata  of  New  Jersey. 

Sept.  30,  1811. — From  Philadelphia  I  made  a  geo- 
logical excuision  of  several  days,  to  examine  the  creta- 
ceous strata  of  New  Jersey,  in  company  with  Mr.  Con- 
rad, to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  several  valuable  works 
on  the  fossil  shells  of  the  tertiary,  cretaceous,  and  Silu- 
rian f?trata  of  the  United  States.  We  vrent  first  to 
Bristol  on  the  Delaware  to  visit  Mr.  Vanuxem,  then  en- 
gaged m  preparing  for  publication  his  portion  of  the 
State  Survey  of  New  York  ;  next  by  Bordentown  to 
New  Egypt,  and  returned  by  the  Timber  Greek,  re- 
crossing  the  Delaware  at  Camden. 

Although  in  this  part  of  New  Jersey  there  is  no 
white  chalk  with  flints,  so  characteristic  of  rocks  of  this 
age  in  Europe,  it  is  still  impossible  to  glance  at  the  fos- 
sils, and  not  to  be  convinced  that  Dr.  Morton  was  right 


Chap.  iv.  CRETACEOUS  STRATA  OP  NEW  JERSEY. 


63 


in  referring-  in  1834  the  New  Jersey  deposits  to  the 
European  cretaceous  era.  lie  and  Mr.  Conrad  re- 
marked that  the  American  species  of  shells  were  nearly 
all  new,  or  distinct  from  those  before  described,  and  yet 
very  analogous  to  those  of  cretaceous  strata  already 
known.  The  New  Jersey  rocks  have  been  separated 
into  five  subdivisions,  but  of  these  two  only  have 
proved  sufficiently  rich  in  organic  remuisis  to  admit  of 
their  being  compared  with  correspondioc;  strata  in  dis- 
tant regions.  The  lower  of  these  consi  its  in  great  part 
of  green  sand  and  green  marl,  and  was  supposed  by 
Dr.  Morton  to  be  the  equivalent  of  tlie  English  "  Green 
sand ;"  while  an  upper  or  calcareous  rock,  composed 
chiefly  of  a  soft  straw-coloured  limestont^  with  corals, 
was  thought  to  correspond  with  the  white  chalk  of  Eu- 
rope. But  after  carefully  comparing  my  collection, 
comprising  about  60  species  of  shells,  besides  many 
corals  and  other  remains,  I  have  arrived  at  the  conclu- 
sion that  the  whole  of  the  New  Jersey  series  agrees  in 
its  chronological  relations  with  the  European  white 
chalk,  or,  to  speak  more  preciseh',  with  the  formations 
ranging  from  the  Gault  to  the  Maestricht  beds  inclu- 
sive. Among  the  shells,  in  determining  wiiicli  I  have 
been  assisted  by  Professor  E.  Forbes,  not  more  than 
four  out  of  sixty  seem  to  be  quite  identical  with  Eu- 
ropean species.  These  are  Bilcnnntes  mticronatus, 
Pecten  qiihiquecostatus,  Ostrea  faJcata  {O.  larva, 
Goldfuss),  and  O.  vesicularis.  Several  others,  how- 
ever, approach  very  near  to,  and  may  be  the  same  as 
European  shells,  as  for  example  Tri^onia  thoracica, 
and  at  least  fifteen  may  Ije  regarded  as  good  geo- 
graphical representatives  of  well-known  chalk  fossils, 
belonging,  for  the  most  part,  to  beds  above  the  Gault 


!, 


1^ 


!if.: 


if  t 


i       : 


64 


GENERAL   ANALOGY   OF   FOSSILS.        Chap.  nr. 


in  Europe.  Tliere  are  a  few  very  peculiar  forms 
among  the  American  testacea,  such  as  2Webratnla 
Sayii  (Morton). 

In  the  ujiper  or  straw-coloured  limestone,  I  found,  on 
the  banks  of  the  Timber  Creek,  twelve  miles  south- 
east of  Philadelphia,  six  !->pecies  of  corals  and  several 
echinoderrn.-,  chieily  allied  to  Upper  Cretaceous  forms. 
The  same  calcareous  stratum  also  abounds  in  forami- 
nifera,  characteristic  of  the  chalk,  comprising,  among 
others,  the  genera  Cristc/laria,  liotaliito,  and  Nodo- 
saria.  Mr.  Owen  has  recognised,  in  the  fossil  reptiles 
from  New  Jersey,  not  ordy  the  vertebrae  of  Mosasari- 
rvs.  previously  noticed  l)y  Dr.  jMorton,  but  also  the 
PliosaifnLs;  and  a  large  crocodile  of  the  Procoelian  di- 
vision, or  having  its  vertebra',  like  the  living  species, 
with  the  anterior  surface  concave.  There  are  also 
many  fish  of  the  shark  lamily,  analogous  to  those  of 
the  English  chalk,  and  tlie  Galeus  prlstodontus  is 
represented  by  a  species  very  closely  allied,  if  not  iden- 
tical. 

Upon  the  whole,  the  list  of  genera,  and  the  forms  of 
the  species,  are  remarkably  analogous  to  the  cretaceous 
group  of  Europe  ;  and  the  agreement  of  four  ov  five 
species  of  MoUusca,  being  in  the  proportion  ot  about 
seven  in  the  hundred,  implies  no  inconsideralile 
amount  of  allinity  at  a  distance  of  between  3000  and 
4000  miles  from  the  corresponding  assemblage  of  fos- 
sils in  Central  and  Nortlunn  Europe,  especially  when 
we  recollect  that  there  is  a  diH'erence  in  latitude  of 
more  than  ten  degrees  between  the  two  districts  com- 
pared. Sunie  of  the  species  common  to  the  opposite 
sides  of  the  Atlantic,  are  those  which  in  Europe  have 
the  greatest  vertical  range,  as  Pecten  quinquccostatus, 


CiiAP.  IV.        TOUR  TO  THE  ANTHRACITE  REGION. 


65 


a])le 

10  and 

f  fos- 

when 

de  of 

com- 
iposite 
!  have 
tatuSf 


I 


and  which  might  iherofore  be  expected  to  recur  in  dis- 
tant parts  of  the  olobe. 

At  the  same  time  we  learn  from  the  facts  above 
mentioned,  that  the  marine  fauna,  whetlicr  vertebrate 
or  invertebrate,  testaceous  or  zoophytic,  was  divided  at 
the  remote  epoch  under  consideration,  as  it  is  now,  into 
distinct  geographical  provinces,  although  the  geologist 
may  everywhere  recognise  the  cretaceous  type,  whe- 
ther in  Europe  or  America,  and  I  might  add,  India. 
This  peculiar  type  exhibits  the  preponderating  influ- 
ence of  a  vast  combination  of  circumstances,  prevail- 
ing at  one  period  throughout  the  globe — circumstance3 
dependent  on  the  state  of  the  physical  gcograpliy.  cli- 
mate, and  the  organic  world  in  the  period  hnmediately 
preceding,  together  with  a  variety  of  other  conditions 
too  long  to  enumerate  here.  It  woidd  not  he  dillicult 
for  a  naturalist  to  point  out  the  characters  stamped  on 
the  living  Flora  and  Fauna,  by  \\hich  they  also  might 
be  distinguished  as  a  whole  from  those  of  all  former 
geological  epochs.  The  resemblance  of  the  corals, 
shells,  and  insects,  of  certain  temperate  regions  of  the 
southern  hemisphere  (Van  Dieman's  Land,  for  exam- 
ple), to  those  of  the  temperate  zone  north  of  the  equa- 
tor, or  the  close  analogy  of  the  arctic  and  antarctic 
fauna,  the  species  in  both  cases  being  quite  difl'erent, 
are  illustrations  of  the  common  type  here  alluded  to, 
which  is  evidently  caused  or  controlled  by  some  gen- 
eral law,  and  by  some  mutual  relation  existing  be- 
tween the  animate  creation  and  the  state  of  the  habi- 
table surface  at  any  given  period. 

Anthracite  Formation  of  Pennsylvania. 

Oct.  3. — Having  already  seen  the  carboniferous  stra- 

6* 


Ifr 


66 


THE    ALLEGHANY    MOUNTAINS. 


Chap.  iv. 


I 


I: 


ta  at  Blossberg  in  P(Min?ylvania,  where  they  are  very 
slightly  distiu!)cd,  and  ^vhcre  tlie  coal  is  bitmniaous,  I 
was  desirouf:;  of  examining  some  of  the  ji^reat  mines  of 
anthiacite  coal  v.'liich  occur  in  the  midst  of  tlie  most 
bent  and  inclined  strata  of  the  Alle<]^liany  mountains. 
Professor  H.  D.  lio;2,'ers,  wlio,  with  an  al)lc  corps  of  as- 
sistants, had  now  nearly  broiij^bt  to  a  close  his  elabo- 
rate State  Survey  of  Pcmisylvania,  kindly  olfcred  to 
be  my  guide,  Avhich  enaljled  me  in  a  comparatively 
short  time  to  olitaiii  an  insight  into  the  geological  slruc- 
ture  of  tliis  chain.  We  first  Ibllowcd  t!ic  course  of  the 
Schuylkill  iliver,  passing  through  a  country  moderate- 
ly elevated  (n,  c,  fig.  5.  p.  71.),  with  hills  between  200 
and  300  f(.'et  al)ove  the  sea,  where  the  rocks  consisted 
chiefly  of  gneiss.  As  we  went  westv/ard  we  entered  a 
belt,  about  twenty-five  miles  broad,  of  red  sandstone 
and  trap  (Xew  Red),  similar  to  that  before  mentioned  at 
New  Ilaveu.  Having  traversed  these  granitic  and 
secondary  formation.-,  we  arrived  at  Reading,  fifty-two 
miles  N.  W.  of  Philadelphia,  and  were  then  at  the 
base  of  the  easternmost  of  the  great  parallel  ridges 
which  constitute  tlie  Alleghanies  or  Appalachian  cliain 
of  mountains.  The  rocks  of  this  chain  consist  of  the 
Silurian,  Devonian,  and  Carboniferous  groups,  which 
are  folded  as  if  they  had  been  subjected  to  a  great 
lateral  piessure  when  in  a  soft  and  yielding  state,  large 
portions  having  been  afterwards  removed  by  denuda- 
tion. No  tiavellcr  can  fail  to  remark  the  long  and 
uniform  parallel  ridges,  with  intervening  valleys,  hke 
so  many  gigantic  ^\'ri^dvles  and  furrov.'s,  which  mark 
the  geographical  outline  of  this  region  ;  and  these  e:> 
ternal  featmes  are  found  by  the  geologist  to  be  inti- 
mately connected  with  the  internal  arrangement  of  the 


Chai'.  IV. 


POTTSVILI.E. 


67 


lam 
"  the 
^vhich 
great 
large 
nuda- 
ancl 
like 
mark 
so  e?> 
inti- 
of  the 


stratified  rockn.  The  long  and  narrow  ridges,  rarely 
rising  more  thiin  2000  feet  al)ovc  the  valley^',  and  usu- 
ally not  more  than  hall"  that  height,  arc  hroken  here 
and  there  by  transverse  fissures,  which  give  passage  to 
rivers,  and  by  one  of  which  the  Schuylkill  ilows  out  at 
Reading.  The  strata  are  most  disturbed  on  the  south- 
eastern iliink  of  tlie  mountain  chain,  where  we  first 
entered,  and  they  become  less  and  less  broken  and  in- 
clined as  they  extend  westward. 

After  passing  several  belts  of  the  infcM'ior  fossiliferous 
strata,  we  came  to  the  Anthracite  coal-measures  of 
Pottsville  on  the  Schuylkill.  Here  I  was  agreeably 
surprised  to  see  a  flourishing  manufacturing  town  with 
the  tall  chinnieys  of  numerous  furnaces,  burning  night 
and  day,  yet  quite  free  from  smoke.  Ijcaving  this  clear 
atmosphere,  and  going  down  into  one  of  the  mines,  it 
was  a  no  less  pleasing  novelty  to  find  that  we  could 
handle  the  coal  without  soiling  our  fingers.  The  slow 
combustion  of  anthracite  can  be  overcome  l>y  a  sirong 
current  of  air,  not  only  in  large  furnaces,  but  by  aid  of 
a  blower  in  the  fire-places  of  private  dwellings,  and  its 
drying  effect  on  the  air  of  a  room  may  be  counteracted 
by  the  evaporation  of  water.  As  managed  by  the 
Americans,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  jjreferring  its  use, 
in  spite  of  the  occasional  stove-like  heat  produced  by  it, 
to  that  of  bituminous  coal  in  Ijondon,  coupled  with  the 
penalty  of  living  constantly  in  a  dark  atmosphere  of 
smoke,  which  destroys  our  furniture,  dress,  and  gar- 
dens, blackens  our  public  buildings,  and  renders  clean- 
liness impossible. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Pottsville,  there  are  no  less 
tiian  thirteen  seams  of  anthracite  coal,  several  of  which 
are  more  than  two  yards  thick.     Some  of  the  lowest 


1 


i'iik 


68 


VAST    SEAM    OF    ANTHRACITE. 


Chap,  iv 


of  tliesc  alioniate  witli  white  jjiits  nncl  a  con s^lome rate 
ol'  coarser  texture  tliau  I  iiad  ever  seen  in  any  produc- 
tive coal-measures,  some  ol  the  pehbles  ot'ciuarti!  heing 
of  the  size  of  a  hen's  eg-jr.  1  was  curious  to  know 
wlietli<?r  the  Stininarifc  would  he  found  here  in  the  un- 
derclays,  as  at  ]3l()ssheri^-  before-mentioned,  situated  120 
mil(,'s  to  the  westward.  It  was  easy  to  ascertain  the 
fact,  for  several  of  the  coal  seams,  from  eight  to  ten 
feet  thick,  were  quarried  in  the  open  air,  and  tiie  strata 
being  vertical,  a  void  space  was  left  after  the  removal 
of  the  fuel,  like  a  straight  open  lissm-e.  in  which  we 
could  walk,  and  see,  in  the  wall  on  the  one  side,  a 
stratum  originally  above,  and  on  the  other,  that  which 
had  been  innni'd lately  below  the  coal.  On  the  former, 
or  what  is  usually  termed  the  roof,  were  sliales  with 
distinct  impressions  of  ferns  ;  among  others,  the  Britisli 
species  Pecopteris  lonchilica  and  Nanrnjttcris  cor- 
daitii  together  with  trunks  and  stems  of  Sigillurla, 
Lcpidodeiidron.  and  Culamltes  ;  w  hile  on  the  opj)o- 
site  or  south-eastern  side,  was  an  underclay  with  nu- 
merous Stigmaria?,  often  several  yards,  and  even  in 
some  cases  thirty  feet  long,  with  their  leaves  or  rootlets 
attached. 

In  this  coal-field,  as  in  all  the  others  hitherto  ob- 
served in  America,  particular  seams  of  coal  are  found 
to  be  far  more  persistent  than  the  accompanying  beds 
of  shale,  sandstone,  or  limestone.  As  we  proceeded 
from  Potlsville,  by  Tama(|ua,  to  the  Lehigh  Summit 
Mine,  we  found  the  beds  of  grit  and  shale  gradually  vo 
thin  out,  so  that  several  beds  of  anthracite,  at  first 
widely  scpru'ated,  were  brought  nearer  and  nearer  to- 
gether, until  they  united,  and  formed  one  mass  about 
fifty  feet  thick,  without  any  greater  interpolated  matter 


Chap.  iv.        GREAT    THICKNESS    OF    STRATA. 


69 


Lo  ob- 
Ifound 
beds? 
iceded 
immit 
illy  to 
It  filial 
er  to- 
labout 
latter 


than  two  thin  layers  of  clay  with  Stigmaria;.  At  IMauch 
Chiuik,  or  the  Bear  Mountain,  this  remarkable  bed  of 
anthracite  is  quarried  in  the  open  air,  and  removed 
bodily  together  with  the  overlying  sandstone,  forty  feet 
thick,  the  smnmit  of  the  hill  being  "  scalped,'  as  one 
of  the  miners  expressed  it.  The  vegetable  matter, 
which  is  represented  by  this  enormous  mass  of  anthra- 
cite, must,  before  it  was  condensed  by  pressure  and  the 
discharge  of  its  hy^drogen,  oxygen,  and  other  \olatile 
ingredients,  have  been  probably  between  200  and  300 
feet  thick.  The  accumulation  of  such  a  thickness  of 
the  remains  of  plants,  so  unmixed  with  earthy  ingre- 
dients, would  be  most  dillicult  to  explain  on  the  hypo- 
thesis of  their  having  been  drifted  into  the  place  they 
now  occupy ;  but  it  becomes  intelligible  if  we  suppose 
them  to  have  grown  on  the  spot.  Whether  Ave  regard 
the  Stigmaria;  as  roots,  according  to  the  opinion  of  M. 
Adolphe  Brongniart  and  Mr.  Binney,  or  embrace  the 
doctrine  of  their  being  acjuatic  plants,  no  one  can  doubt 
that  they  at  least  are  fossilised  on  the  very  spot  where 
they  grew  ;  and  as  all  agree  that  they  are  not  marine 
plants,  they  go  far  to  establish  the  doctrine  of  the 
growth  in  situ  of  the  materifds  of  the  overlying  coal 
seams. 

The  prodigious  thickness  of  the  carboniferous  rocks 
in  this  part  of  the  Appalachian  chain,  is  in  harmony 
with  the  theory  already  alluded  to,  which  requires  the 
repeated  sinking  down  of  many  successive  terr<.'strial 
surfaces,  allowing  an  indefinite  quantity  of  sediment  to 
be  suporimposed  vertically  in  one  continuous  series  of 
beds.  The  siu'veys  of  Peiuisylvania  and  Virginia  show 
that  the  south-east  was  the  quarter  whence  the  coarser 
materials  of  the  carboniferous  rocks  were  derived,  and 


p 


ft 


70 


VAST    EXTENT    OP 


Chap.  rv. 


there  are  proofs  that  the  ancient  land  lay  in  that  direc- 
tion. The  conglomerate  which  forms  tiie  general  base 
of  the  coal-mea.suns  is  I5()U  feet  thick  in  the  Sharp 
Mountain,  where  I  saw  it,  near  Pottsville ;  whereas  it 
has  only  a  thickness  of  TiOO  feet,  about  thirty  miles  to 
the  north-west,  and  dwindles  gradually  away  when 
followed  still  farther  in  the  same  direction,  till  its  thick- 
ness is  reduced  to  thirty  feet.  (Rollers.  Trans.  Assoc. 
Amer.  Geol,  1810—42,  p.  410.)  The  limestones,  on 
the  other  hand,  of  the  coal-measures,  augment  as  we 
trace  them  westward.  Similar  observations  have  been 
made  in  regard  io  the  Silurian  and  Devonian  forma- 
tions in  New  York:  the  sandstones  and  all  the  me- 
chanically-formed locks  thinning  out  as  they  go  west- 
ward, and  the  limestoiies  thickenin<r,  as  it  were,  at  their 
expense.  It  is,  therelbre,  clear  that  the  ancient  land 
was  to  the  east :  the  dc(;p  sea,  with  its  b'anks  of  coral 
and  shells,  to  the  Avest. 

I  at  lirst  supposed  that  some  deception  might  have 
arisen  respecting  the  alleged  thickness  of  the  older  fos- 
siliferous  rocks  of  the  .Appalacliians,  owing  to  the  dis- 
locations and  inverted  position  of  the  beds,  but  I  was 
soon  convinced  that  due  regard  had  been  paid  to  the 
apjiarent  repetitions  caused  by  these  disturbances,  and 
I  have  httle  doubt  that  those  Silurian  and  Devonian 
strata,  which  do  not  exceed  in  their  aggregate  thick- 
ness a  mile  and  a  half  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
acquire  more  than  three  times  that  thickness  in  the 
Pennsylvanian  AUeghanies. 

A  few  days'  observation  of  the  identity  of  the  fossil 
plants,  and  the  relative  position  of  the  anthracite,  satis- 
fied me  that  it  was  of  the  same  age  as  the  bituminous 
coal  which  I  had  seen  at  Blossberg.   This  opinion  was, 


•fm 


Chap.  iv. 


THE    APPALACITIAN    COAL-FIELD. 


71 


I  believo,  first  pioimilfrated  by  Mr.  Foiitherstonehaugh 
in  1831,  at  a  liino  when  many  •^eolojr'ists  Av<!re  disposj^d 
to  assif>n  a  higher  antiquity  to  tlie  anthracite  than  to 
the  l)ituniinou5i  coal-measures  of  the  I'nited  States. 
The  recent  surveyti  have  now  e.-itahlishcd  this  fact  be- 
yond all  (jneslion,  and  hence  it  becomes  a  sul)ject  of 
great  interest  to  incjuire  liow  these  two  kinds  of  fuel, 
originating  as  they  did  from  precisely  the  same  species 
of  plants,  and  formed  at  the  same  period,  should  have 
become  so  very  dillerent  in  their  chemical  composition. 
In  the  first  place,  I  may  mention  that  the  anthracite 
coal-measures  above  alluded  to,  occurring  in  tlie  eastern 
or  most  disturbed  part  of  the  Appalachian  chain,  are 
fragments  or  outliers  of  the  great  continuous  coal-field 
of  Pennsylvania,  Virginia,  and  Oiiio,  which  occurs 
about  forty  miles  to  the  westward.  This  coal-field  is 
remarkable  for  its  vast  area,  lor  it  is  descril)ed  by  Pro- 
fessor H.  D.  Rogers  as  extending  contimiously  from 
N.  E.  to  S.  W.,  for  a  distance  of  720  miles,  its  greatest 
width  being  about  1  SO  miles.  On  a  nwderate  estimate 
its  superficial  area  amounts  to  63,000  square  miles.  It 
extends  from  the  northern  border  of  Pennsylvania  as 
far  south  as  near  Huntsville  in  Alabama. 

Tliis  coal  formation,  before  its  original  limits  were 
reduced  by  denudation,  must  have  measured,  at  a 
reasonable  calculation,  900  miles  in  length,  and  in  some 
places  more  than  200  miles  in  breadth.  By  reference 
to  the  section  (fig  5.,  p.  74.),  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
strata  of  coal  are  horizontal  to  the  westward  of  the 
mountain  in  the  region  d,  e,  and  become  more  and 
more  inclined  and  folded  as  we  proceed  eastward. 
Now  it  is  invariably  found,  as  Professor  H.  D.  Rogers 
has  shown  by  chemical  analysis,  that  the  coal  is  most 


i}.i 


iii     I 


79 


DEBITUMINIZATION    OF    COAL. 


Chap.  iv. 


bilunnnous  towards  its  wpstoni  limit,  whoio  it  remains 
level  and  unbroken,  and  that  it  becomes  proiricr-fsively 
debitiimini/ed  as  we  travel  south-eastward  towards  the 
more  bent  and  distorted  rocks.  Thus,  on  the  Ohio, 
the  proportit)!!  of  hydrogen,  oxygen,  and  other  volatile 
niattt'rs,  ranges  from  forty  to  fifty  per  cent.  Eastward 
of  this  line,  on  the  Monongahcla,  it  still  approaches 
forty  per  cent.,  where  the  strata  begin  to  experience 
some  gentle  flexures.  On  entering  the  Alleghany 
Mountains^  where  the  distinct  anticlinal  axes  begin  to 
show  thoniselves,  but  before  the  dislocations  are  con- 
siderable, the  volatile  matter  is  generally  in  the  propor- 
tion of  eighteen  or  twenty  per  cent.  At  length,  when 
we  arrive  at  some  insulated  coal-fields  (5',  fig.  5.)  asso- 
ciated with  the  boldest  flexures  of  the  Appalachian 
cliain,  where  the  strata  have  been  actually  turned  over, 
as  near  Pottsville,  we  find  the  coal  to  contain  only  from 
six  to  twelve  per  cent,  of  bitumen,  thus  becoming  a 
genuine  anthracite.  {Trans,  of  Ass.  of  Amer.  Geol., 
p.  470.) 

It  appears  from  the  researches  of  Liebig  and  other 
eminent  chemists,  that  when  wood  and  vegetable  mat- 
ter are  bmied  in  the  earth,  exposed  to  moisture,  and 
partially  or  entirely  excluded  from  the  air,  they  decom- 
pose slowly  and  evolve  carbonic  acid  gas,  thus  part- 
ing with  a  portion  of  their  original  oxygen.  By  this 
means,  they  become  gradually  converted  into  lignite  or 
wood  coal,  which  contains  a  larger  proportion  of  hy- 
drogen than  wood  does.  A  continuance  of  decomposi- 
tion changes  this  hgnite  into  common  or  bituminous 
coal,  chiefly  by  the  discharge  of  carburetted  hydrogen, 
or  the  gas  by  which  we  illumine  our  streets  and  houses. 
According  to  BischofT,  the  inflammable  gases  which 


Chap. 


IV. 


THE  A^.PA^Acn,A^'  cuAiy. 


73 


iransf,,,-,,,.,  „a-         or  hil,     ■  , ,  ,  "'"*  S™'""")' 

'0  «l,ic!,  ,!,„  variou,  ,■,0?!'''"'' '"'"  '•"""■""to, 

VVe  Jiave  socn  thaf  in  #i  *  *  . 
«h"o  U  an  in.ima.el^tlT  "''''""  ^'"■'''H 
wlucl,  .|.„  coal  I,a»  pa^o d  ^  ,,t"°™  "'°  "'•^•™' '» 
=>"<I  ll.e  amount  of  distirfnnJ  "^^"'"""^  ™'"on.s, 
™.Ier,„„o.  T„„  tin*:  :  "t"'"  T"'"  '"■'™ 
may  be  aitribuicd  panlv  m  il,  Phenomena 

»<1  for  Ihe  escape  of  v  L^         ^'■"'""  '■"""'J'  ""''"■d- 

cracks  and  crevices  f™':",""  '"""i'"  «"™ber  of 

i>ioven,en.stookplace  whiCl,  '     '"="  ""'  g"«« 

Appalachian  s  Ja/V  „,  t™  '™',  '">''  '»'<'«<'  ">« 
ent  period,  .l,e„„al  waters  aid  IT  "'' ""  """  P''^" 
from  the  earth  durino-Tarr  "  "'"'"""  ''""<■  »»' 
not  fail  to  promote  thc°dZ«  "  "''  ""''  *''^  ^xW 
ter  from  the  carbonife^o'S"'™'  "'  ^"^'"^  "'^'- 

StHUCTURE    and    Onir-rxT 

The  subjects  discussed  in  ii,»  „.      j- 
me  naturally  to  say  somethinr,!  ^'""^'"S  pages,  lead 
of  the  Appalachian"^  Z«Z    r"'"^.*"  ='™cture 
to  the  less  elevated  regil  1  l?"   '''"'  "^'^"o"' 
annexed  ideal  section  (T  5  w      ,  -T'  "'  "■    The 
frequently  occasion  to  rel^„  1  jj'f  '  *^"  have 
-.on  of  the  Principal  pheno^LTotir/T  ^fa^ 


i ' 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-S) 


1.0 


I.I 


l^|28  |25 
■^  Bi2  |22 
I   ^    12.0 


u 


!:25„U|J^ 

•4 6"     

► 

Fhotograidiic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WIST  MAIN  STRIIT 

WEBSTM.N.Y.  USM 

(716)t72-4S03 


^ 


\\ 


\ 


74 


GEOLOGICAL    SECTION. 


ChaF.  IV. 


•I 


I 

a 

1 


i^ 


■a 

a 
a 


•SO  I"   il"g  5 


1^ 


2 


I 


I 


^ 


!-<««' 


Chap.  iv. 


THE    APPALACHIAN    CHAIN. 


75 


o 
I 

3 

ill 

I 


I 


I 


•I 


.a 


E  j;  o 
•III 


U 


■2  Si 


I  S  5  S  <a  ■? 
|i  £  g  g  S. 


number  of  detailg.  Starting  from  the  shores  of  the 
Atlantic,  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Continent,  we  first 
come  to  a  low  region  (a,  b),  which  was  called  the  allu- 
vial plain  by  the  first  geographers.  It  is  occupied  by 
tertiary  and  cretaceous  strata  nearly  horizontal,  and 
containing  in  general  no  hard  and  solid  rocks,  and  is 
usually  not  more  than  from  50  to  100  feet  high,  from 
New  Jersey  to  Virginia.  In  these  states  this  zone 
is  not  many  leagues  in  breadth,  but  it  acquues  a 
breadth  of  100  and  150  miles  in  the  Southern  States, 
and  a  height  of  several  hundred  feet  towards  its  west- 
ern limits.  The  next  belt,  from  b  to  c,  consists  of 
granitic  rocks  (hypogene),  chiefly  gneiss  and  mica- 
schist,  covered  occasionally  with  unconformable  red 
sandstone.  No.  4  (New  Red  ?),  remarkable  for  its  orni- 
thicnites.  Sometimes  also  this  sandstone  rests  on  the 
edges  of  the  disturbed  paleozoic  rocks  (as  seen  in  the 
Section).  The  region  (b,  c),  sometimes  called  the  "At- 
lantic Slope,"  corresponds  nearly  in  average  width  with 
the  low  and  flat  plain  (a,  b),  and  is  characterised  by 
hills  of  moderate  height,  contrasting  strongly,  in  their 
rounded  shape  and  altitude,  with  the  long,  steep,  and 
lofty  parallel  ridges  of  the  Alleghany  mountains.  The 
out-crop  of  the  strata  in  these  ridges,  Uke  the  two  belts 
of  hypogene  and  newer  rocks  (a,  b,  and  b,  c),  above 
alluded  to,  when  laid  down  on  a  geological  map,  ex- 
hibit long  stripes  of  different  colours,  running  in  a 
N.  E.  and  S.  W.  direction,  in  the  same  way  as  the 
lias,  chalk,  and  other  secondary  formations  in  the  mid- 
dle and  eastern  half  of  England. 

The  narrow  and  parallel  zones  of  the  Appalachians 
here  mentioned  consist  of  strata,  folded  into  a  succes- 
sion of  convex  and  concave  flexures,  subsequently  laid 


if  ■ 


76 


STftUCTURE    AND   ORIGIN    OP 


Chap,  iv 


open  by  denudation.  The  component  rocks  are  of 
great  thickness,  all  referable  to  the  Silurian,  Devonian, 
and  Carboniferous  formations.  There  is  no  principal 
or  central  axis,  as  in  the  Pyrenees  and  many  other 
chains — no  nucleus  to  which  all  the  minor  ridges  con- 
form ;  but  the  chain  consists  of  many  nearly  equal 
and  parallel  foldings,  having  what  the  geologists  term 
an  anticlinal  and  synclinal  arrangement.  This  sys- 
tem of  hills  extends,  geologically  considered,  from  Ver- 
mont to  Alabama,  being  more  than  1000  miles  long, 
from  50  to  150  miles  broad,  and  varying  in  height 
from  2000  to  6000  feet.  Sometimes  the  whole  assem- 
blage of  ridges  runs  perfectly  straight  for  a  distance  of 
more  than  50  miles,  after  which  all  of  them  wheel 
round  together,  and  take  a  new  direction,  at  an  angle 
of  20  or  30  degrees  to  the  first. 

Mr.  R.  C.  Taylor  had  made  considerable  progress  in 
unravelling  the  structure  of  certain  portions  of  this 
chain,  before  the  commencement  of  the  State  Surveys 
of  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  the  former  conducted 
by  Professor  W.  B.  Rogers,  the  latter  by  his  brother, 
Professor  H.  D.  Rogers,  both  aided  by  a  numerous 
corps  of  assistants.  To  these  elaborate  and  faithful 
surveys  we  owe  the  discovery  of  the  clue  to  the  general 
law  of  structure  prevailing  throughout  this  important 
range  of  mountains,  which,  however  simple  it  may  ap- 
pear when  once  made  out  and  clearly  explained,  might 
long  have  been  overlooked,  amidst  so  great  a  mass  of 
compUcated  details.  It  appears  that  the  bending  and 
fracture  of  the  beds  is  greatest  on  the  south-eastern  or 
Atlantic  side  of  the  chain,  and  the  strata  become  less 
and  less  disturbed  as  we  go  westward,  until  at  length 
they  regain  their  original  or  horizontal  position.     By 


Chap.  it. 


THE    APPALACHIAN   CHAIN. 


77 


K.V.  tV 


of 


re 
inian, 
icipal 
other 
s  con- 
equal 
s  term 
is  sys- 
m  Ver- 
s  long, 
height 
assem- 
ance  of 
1  wheel 
in  angle 

jgress  in 
of  this 
Surveys 
mducted 
brother, 
numerous 
faithful 
general 
mportant 
may  ap- 
id,  might 
mass  of 
iing  and 
[astern  or 
;ome  less 
t  length 
ion.    By 


reference  to  the  section  (lig.  5,),  it  will  be  seen  that  on 
the  eastern  side,  or  on  the  ridges  and  troughs  nearest 
the  Atlantic,  the  south-eastern  dips  predominate,  in 
consequence  of  the  beds  having  been  folded  back  upon 
tliemselves,  as  in  i,  those  on  die  north-western  side  of 
each  arch  having  been  inverted.  The  next  set  of 
arches  (such  as  k)  are  more  open,  each  having  its 
western  side  steepest ;  the  next  (1)  opens  out  still  more 
widely,  the  next  (m)  still  more,  and  this  continues  un- 
til we  arrive  at  the  low  and  level  part  of  the  Appalachi- 
an coal-field  (d,  e). 

In  nature,  or  in  a  true  section,  the  number  of  bend- 
ings  or  parallel  folds  is  so  much  greater  that  they  could 
not  be  expressed  in  a  diagram  without  confusion.  It 
is  also  clear  that  large  quantities  of  rock  have  been  re- 
moved by  aqueous  action  or  denudation,  as  will  appear 
if  we  attempt  to  complete  all  the  curves  in  the  manner 
mdicatcd  by  the  dotted  lines  at  i  and  k. 

The  movements  which  imparted  so  uniform  an  order 
of  arrangement  to  this  vast  system  of  rocks  must  have 
been  contemporaneous,  or  belonging  to  one  and  the 
same  series,  depending  on  some  common  cause.  Their 
geological  date  is  unusually  well  defined.  We  may 
declare  them  to  have  taken  place  after  the  deposition 
of  the  carboniferous  strata  (No.  5.),  and  before  the 
formation  of  the  red  sandstone  (No.  4.).  The  greatest 
disturbing  and  denuding  forces  have  evidently  been  ex- 
erted on  the  south-eastern  side  of  the  chain,  and  it  is 
here  that  igneous  or  plutonic  rocks  are  observed  to  have 
invaded  the  strata,  forming  dykes,  some  of  which  run 
for  miles  in  lines  parallel  to  the  main  direction  of  the 
Appalachians,  or  N.N.E.  and  S.S.W. 

According  to  tlie  theory  of  the  Professors  Rogers,  the 


% 


;i| 


/! 


78 


STRUCTURE    AND   ORIGIN   OP 


Chap,  iv 


wave-like  flexures,  above  alluded  to,  are  explained  by 
supposing  the  strata,  when  in  a  plastic  state,  to  have 
rested  on  a  widely-extended  surface  of  fluid  lava,  and 
elastic  vapours  and  gases.  The  billowy  movement  of 
this  subterranean  sea  of  melted  matter  imparted  its 
undulations  to  the  elastic  overlying  crust,  which  wag 
enabled  to  retain  the  new  shapes  thus  given  to  it 
by  the  consolidation  of  the  liquid  matter  injected  into 
fissures.* 

For  my  own  part,  I  cannot  imagine  any  real  con- 
nection between  the  great  parallel  undulations  of  the 
rocks  and  the  real  waves  of  a  subjacent  ocean  of  liquid 
matter,  on  which  the  bent  and  broken  crust  may  once 
have  rested.  That  there  were  great  lakes,  or  seas  of 
lava,  retained  by  volcanic  heat  for  ages,  in  a  liquid 
state  beneath  the  Alleghanies,  is  highly  probable,  for 
the  simultaneous  eruptions  of  distant  vents  in  the 
Andes  leave  no  doubt  of  the  wide  subterranena  areas 
permanently  occupied  by  sheets  of  fluid  lava  in 
our  own  times.  It  is  also  consistent  with  what  we 
know  of  the  laws  governing  volcanic  action  to  assume 
that  the  force  operated  in  a  Unear  duection,  for  we  see 
trains  of  volcanic  vents  breaking  out  for  hundreds  of 
miles  along  a  straight  line,  and  we  behold  long  parallel 
fissures,  often  filled  with  trap  or  consolidated  lava,  hold- 
ing a  straight  course  for  great  distances  through  rocks 
of  all  ages.  The  causes  of  this  peculiar  mode  of  de- 
velopment are  as  yet  obscure  and  unexplained ;  but 
the  existence  of  long  narrow  ranges  of  mountains,  and 
of  great  faults  and  vertical  shifts  in  the  strata  prolonged 
for  great  distances  in  certain  directions,  may  aU  be  re- 
sults of  the  same  kind  of  action.    It  also  accords  well 

*  Trans,  of  Ass.  of  Amer.  Geol,  1840—2,  p.  515. 


Chap.  iv. 


THE    APPALACHIAN    CHAIN. 


79 


I  by 
iiave 

and 
It  of 
id  its 
I  was 

to  it 
I  into 

1  con- 

of  the 

liquid 

y  once 

seas  of 
liquid 

He,  for 
in  the 

a  areas 

Biva    in 

hat  we 
assume 
we  see 
[reds  of 
parallel 
a,  hold- 
;h  rocks 
of  de- 
[d;   but 
|ins,  and 
rolonged 
be  re- 
»rds  well 


with  established  facts  to  assume  that  the  solid  crust 
overlying  a  region  where  the  subterranean  heat  is  in- 
creasing in  intensity,  becomes  gradually  upheaved, 
fractured,  and  distended,  the  lower  part  of  the  newly 
opened  fissures  becoming  filled  with  fused  matter, 
which  soon  consolidates  and  crystallizes.  These  up- 
lifting movements  may  be  propagated  along  narrow 
belts,  placed  side  by  side,  and  may  have  been  in  prog- 
ress simultaneously,  or  in  succession,  in  one  narrow 
zone  after  another. 

When  the  expansive  force  has  been  locally  in  opera- 
tion for  a  long  period,  in  a  given  district,  there  is  a  ten- 
dency in  the  subterranean  heat  to  diminish ; — the  vol- 
canic energy  is  spent,  and  its  position  is  transferred  to 
some  new  region.  Subsidence  then  begins,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  cooling  and  shrinking  of  subterranean 
seas  of  lava  and  gaseous  matter :  and  the  solid  strata 
collapse  in  obedience  to  gravity.  If  this  contraction 
take  place  along  narrow  and  parallel  zones  of  country, 
the  incumbent  flexible  strata  would  be  forced,  in  pro- 
portion as  they  were  let  down,  to  pack  themselves  into 
a  smaller  space,  as  they  conformed  to  the  circumfer- 
ence of  a  smaller  arc.  The  manner  in  which  undula- 
tions may  be  gradually  produced  in  pUant  strata  by 
subsidence  is  illustrated  on  a  small  scale  by  the  creeps 
in  coal-mines ;  there  both  the  overlying  and  underlying 
shales  and  clays  sink  down  from  the  ceiUng,  or  rise  up 
from  the  floor,  and  fill  the  galleries  which  have  been 
left  vacant  by  the  abstraction  of  the  fuel.*  In  like 
manner  the  failure  of  support  arising  from  subterranean 
causes  may  enable  the  force  of  gravity,  though  origi- 

*  See  "  Elements  of  Geology,"  by  the  author.    2d  ed.  vol.  i., 
p.  110.— Boston  ed.  vol.  i.  p.  108. 


^? 


80 


THK    APPALACHIAN    CHAIN. 


ClUP.  IV. 


nally  exerted  vertically,  to  bend  and  scjueeze  the  rocks 
as  if  they  had  been  subjected  to  lateral  pressure. 

"  EurtliquakcB  have  raised  to  heaven  the  liumble  valo, 
And  gulphs  llic  niountaiu's  mighty  mass  entomb'd, 
And  where  tli'  Atlantic  rolls,  wide  continents  have  bloom'd." 

In  applying  these  lines  to  the  physical  revolutions  of 
the  territory  at  present  under  consideration,  we  must 
remember  that  the  continent  which  bloomed  to  the 
eastward,  or  where  the  Atlantic  now  rolls  its  waves 
(see  p.  70.),  was  anterior  to  the  origin  of  the  carbonifer- 
ous strata  which  were  derived  from  its  ruins ;  whereas 
the  elevation  and  subsidence  supposed  to  have  given 
rise  to  the  Appalachian  ridges  was  subsequent  to  the 
deposition  of  the  coal-measures.  But  all  these  great 
movements  of  oscillation  were  again  distinct  from  the 
last  upheaval  which  brought  up  the  whole  region  above 
the  level  of  the  sea,  laying  dry  the  horizontal  New 
Red  Sandstone  (No.  4.,  fig.  5.),  as  well  as  a  great  part 
of,  if  not  all,  the  Appalachian  chain. 

The  largest  amount  of  denudation  is  found,  as  might 
have  been  expected,  on  the  south-eastern  side  of  the 
chain,  where  the  force  of  expansion  and  contraction,  of 
elevation  and  subsidence,  has  been  greatest.  The  first 
set  of  denuding  operations  may  have  taken  place  when 
the  strata,  including  the  carboniferous,  were  first  raised 
above  the  sea ;  a  second,  when  they  sank  again ;  a 
third,  when  the  Red  Sandstone  (No.  4.),  after  it  had 
been  thrown  down  on  the  truncated  edges  of  the  older 
strata,  participated  in  the  waste.  The  great  extent  of 
solid  materials  thus  removed,  must  add,  in  no  small 
degree,  to  the  difficulty  of  restoring  in  imagination  the 
successive  changes  which  have  occurred,  and  of  ac- 
counting in  a  satisfactory  manner  for  the  origin  of  this 
mountain  chain. 


IT. 


Chap.  V.        WOODED    RIDGES    OF    ALLEGHANIES. 


81 


CHAPTER  V. 


3  of 

dUst 
the 
aves 
lifer- 
eveas 
Tiven. 
0  the 
great 
n  the 
above 
[  New 
It  part 

might 

of  the 

ion,  of 

he  first 
when 
raised 

;ain;  a 
it  had 

le  older 

Ltent  of 

[o  small 

lion  the 

of  ac- 

of  this 


Wooded  Ridges  of  thn  Alleghany  Mountains. — German  Patois  in 
Pennsylvania.— Lehigh  Summit  Mine. — Effects  of  Ice  during  a 
Flood  on  the  Delaware.— Election  of  a  Governor  at  Trenton  and 
at  Philadelphia. — Journey  to  Boston. — Autumnal  Tints  of  the 
Foliage. — Boston  the  Seat  of  Commerce,  of  Government,  and  of  a 
University. — Lectures  at  the  Lowell  Institute. — Influence  of  oral 
Instruction  in  Literature  and  Science. — Fees  of  Public  Lecturers. 
— Educational  Funds  sunk  in  costly  Buildings. — Advantages  of 
anti-huilding  Clauses. — Blind  Asylum. — Lowell  Factories. — Na- 
tional Schools. — Equality  of  Sects. — Society  in  Boston. 

October  7.  1811. — The  steep  slopes,  as  well  as  the 
summits  of  the  ridges  in  the  anthracite  region  of  Penn- 
sylvania, arc  so  densely  covered  with  wood,  that  the 
surveyors  were  obliged  to  climb  to  the  of  tops  trees,  in 
order  to  obtain  general  views  of  the  country,  and  con- 
struct a  geographical  map  on  the  scale  of  two  inches  to 
a  mile,  on  which  they  laid  down  the  result  of  tlieir  ge- 
ological observations.  Under  the  trees,  the  ground  is 
covered  with  the  Rhododendron,  Kalmia  and  another 
evergreen  called  Sweet  Fern  {Comptonia  asplenifolia), 
the  leaves  of  which  have  a  very  agreeable  odour,  re- 
sembling that  of  our  bog-myrtle  {Mi/r tea  Gale),  but 
fainter.  The  leaves  are  so  like  those  of  a  fern  or  Pteris 
in  form,  that  the  miners  call  the  impressions  of  the  fos- 
sil Pecopteris,  in  the  coal-shales  "  sweet  fern." 

We  found  the  German  language  chiefly  spoken  in 
this  mountainous  region,  and  preached  in  most  of  the 
churches,  as  at  Reading.  It  is  fast  degenerating  into 
a  patoirf,  and  it  is  amusing  to  see  many  Germanized 
English  words  introduced  even  into  the  newspapers, 


i    jl 


I// 


/ 


82 


EFFECTS  OF  ICE  DURING  A  FLOOD.   CiiAr.T. 


such  as  turnpeik  for  turnpike,  fcnse  for  fence,  ^aMcr 
for  flour,  or  others,  such  as  jail,  which  have  been  adopt- 
ed without  alteration. 

From  the  Lehigh  Summit  Mine,  wc  descended  for 
nine  miles  on  a  railway  impelled  by  our  own  weight, 
in  a  small  car  at  the  rate  of  twenty  miles  an  hour.  A  man 
sat  in  front  checking  our  speed  by  a  drag  on  the  steeper 
decUvities,  and  oiling  the  wheels  without  stopping. 
The  coal  is  let  down  by  the  same  railroad,  sixty  mules 
being  employed  to  draw  up  the  empty  cars  every  day. 
In  the  evening  the  mules  themselves  are  sent  down 
standing  four  abreast,  and  feeding  out  of  mangers  the 
whole  way.  We  saw  them  start  in  a  long  train  of 
waggons,  and  were  told,  that  so  completely  do  they  ac- 
quire the  notion  that  it  is  their  business  through  Ufe 
to  pull  weights  up  hill,  and  ride  down  at  their  ease, 
that  if  any  of  them  are  afterwards  taken  away  from 
the  mine  and  set  to  other  occupations,  they  willingly 
drag  heavy  loads  up  steep  ascents,  but  obstinately  re- 
fuse to  pull  any  vehicle  down  hill,  coming  to  a  dead 
halt  at  the  commencement  of  the  slightest  slope. 

The  general  effect  of  the  long  unbroken  summits  of 
the  ridges  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains  is  very  monoto- 
nous and  unpicturesque  :  but  the  scenery  is  beautiful, 
where  we  meet  occasionally  with  a  transverse  gorge 
through  which  a  large  river  escapes.  After  visiting  the 
Beaver  Meadow  coal  field,  we  left  the  mountains  by  one 
of  these  openings,  called  the  Lehigh  Gap,  wooded  on 
both  sides,  and  almost  filled  up  by  the  Lehigh  River,  a 
branch  of  the  Delaware,  the  banks  of  which  we  now 
followed  to  Trenton  in  New  Jersey. 

On  our  way,  we  heard  much  of  a  disastrous  flood 
which  occurred  last  spring  on  the  melting  of  the  snow, 


* 


jUAT.  v. 

flauer 
adopt- 

led  for 
i^eiglit, 
A  man 
steeper 
jpping. 
mules 
ry  day. 
t  down 
ers  the 
rain  of 
hey  ac- 
ugh  life 
ir  ease, 
ly  from 
villingly 
itely  re- 
a  dead 
)e. 

imits  of 
monoto- 
eautiful, 
36  gorge 
iting  the 
8  by  one 
)oded  on 
River,  a 
we  now 

)us  flood 
\Q  snow, 


Ciur.  V. 


ELECTION   OF   GOVERNORS. 


83 


and  swept  away  several  bridges,  causing  the  loss  of 
many  lives.  I  observed  the  trees  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Delaware  at  an  elevation  of  about  twenty-four  feet 
above  the  present  surface  of  the  river,  with  their  bark 
worn  through  by  the  sheets  of  ice  which  had  been  driv- 
en against  them.  The  canal  was  entirely  filled  up 
with  gravel  and  large  stones  to  the  level  of  the  towing 
path,  twenty  feet  above  the  present  level  of  the  stream, 
which  appeared  to  me  to  be  only  explicable  by  suppo- 
sing the  stones  to  have  been  frozen  into  and  carried  by 
the  floating  ice. 

Oct.  11. — Reaching  Trenton,  the  capital  of  New 
Jersey,  late  in  the  evening,  we  found  the  town  in  all 
the  bustle  of  a  general  election.  A  new  governor  and 
representatives  for  the  State  legislature  were  to  be 
chosen.  As  parties  are  nearly  balanced,  and  the  suf- 
frage universal,  the  good  order  maintained  was  highly 
creditable.  Processions,  called  "  parades,"  were  peram- 
bulating the  streets  headed  by  bands  of  music,  and  car- 
rying transparencies  with  lights  in  them,  in  which  the 
names  of  diflerent  counties,  and  mottoes,  such  as  Union, 
Liberty,  and  Equality,  were  conspicuously  inscribed. 
Occasionally  a  man  called  out  with  a  stentorian  voice, 
"  The  ticket,  the  virhole  ticket,  and  nothing  but  the  tick- 
et," which  was  followed  by  a  loud  English  hurra, 
while  at  intervals  a  single  blow  weis  struck  on  a  great 
drum,  as  if  to  imitate  the  firing  of  a  gun.  On  their 
tickets  were  piinted  the  names  of  the  governor,  officers, 
and  members  for  whom  the  committee  of  each  party 
had  determined  to  -  ote. 

The  next  day  on  our  return  to  Philadelphia,  we 
(bund  that  city  also  in  the  ferment  of  an  election,  bands 
of  music  being  placed  in  open  carriages,  each  drawn 


i 


84 


JOURNEY    TO   BOSTON. 


Ciur.  V. 


by  four  horses,  and  cuch  horse  decorated  with  a  flag, 
attached  to  its  Hhouliler,  which  has  a  gay  eflcct.  All 
day  a  great  bell  tolls  ut  tlic  State  Iiouhc,  to  remind  tho 
electors  of  their  duties.  It  sounded  hkc  a  funeral ;  and 
on  my  inquiring  of  a  bydtauder  what  it  meant,  one  of 
the  democratic  party  answered,  "  It  is  the  knell  of  tha 
whigs."  In  their  popular  addresses,  some  candidates 
ask  the  people  whether  they  will  vote  for  the  whigs 
who  will  lay  on  new  taxes.  As  it  is  well  known,  that 
such  taxes  must  be  imposed,  if  the  dividends  on  the 
State  bonds  arc  to  Ije  paid,  these  popular  appeals  are 
ominous.  The  rapid  full  in  the  value  of  State  securi- 
ties shows  that  the  public  generally  have  no  confidence 
that  the  majority  of  the  electors  will  be  proof  against 
the  insidious  arts  of  these  demasro^rucs. 

Oct.  14. — We  came  from  Philadelphia  by  New 
York  to  Boston,  300  miles,  without  fatigue  in  twenty- 
four  hours,  by  railway  and  steam-boat,  having  spent 
three  hours  in  an  hotel  at  New  York,  and  sleeping 
soundly  for  six  hours  in  the  cabin  of  a  commodious 
steamer  as  we  passed  through  liong  Island  Sound. 
The  economy  of  time  in  travelling  here  is  truly  admi- 
rable. On  getting  out  of  the  cars  in  the  morning,  we 
were  ushered  into  a  spacious  saloon,  where  with  200 
others  we  sat  down  to  breakfast,  and  learnt  with  sur- 
prise, that,  while  thus  agreeably  employed,  we  had 
been  carried  rapidly  in  a  large  ferry-boat  without  per- 
ceiving any  motion  across  a  broad  estuary  to  Provi- 
dence in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island. 

Many  trees  in  New  Jersey,  Connecticut,  and  Massa- 
chusetts, have  now  begun  to  assume  their  autumnal 
tints,  especially  the  maples,  while  the  oaks  retain  their 
vivid  green  colour.     I  can  only  compare  the  brightness 


I 


Ciur.  V- 


BOSTON. 


200 


lassa- 

kmnal 

their 

litness 


ot  the  faded  leaves,  scarlet,  purple,  and  yellow,  to  that 
of  tulips.     It  is  now  the  Indian  summer,  a  season  of 
warm  sunnv  weather,  which  often  succeeds  to  the  first 
frost  and  rain,  a  time  which  the  Indians  employed  in 
hunting  and  laying  up  a  store  of  game  for  the  winter. 
Boston,  Oct.  14.  to  Dec.  3.  1841. — It  is  fortunati- 
that  Boston  is  at  once  a  flourishing  commercial  port, 
and  the  seat  of  the  best  endowed  university  in  Ameri- 
ca, for  Cambridge,  where  Harvard  College  is  situated, 
is  so  near,  that  it  may  be  considered  as  a  suburb  of  the 
nictroplis.     The  medical  lectures,  indeed,  are  deUvercd 
in  the  city,  where  the  great  hospitals  are  at  hand. 
The  mingling  of  the  professors,  both  literary  and  sci- 
entific, with  the  eminent  lawyers,  clergymen,  physicians, 
and  principal  merchants  of  the  place,  forms  a  societj 
of  a  superior  kind  ;  and  to  these  may  be  added  severa 
persons,  who,  having  inherited  ample  fortunes,  hav 
successfully  devoted  their  hves  to  original  researches  in 
history,  and  other  departments.     It  is  also  a  political 
advantage  of  no  small  moment  that  the  legislature  as- 
sembles here,  as  its  members,  consisting  in  great  part 
of  small  proprietors  farming  their  own  land,  are  thus 
brought  into  contact  with  a  community  in  a  very  ad- 
vanced state  of  civilisation,  so  that  they  are  under  the 
immediate  check  of  an  enlightened  public  opinion.     It 
is  far  more  usual  to  place  the  capital,  as  it  is  called,  in 
die  centre  of  the  State,  often  in  some  small  village  or 
town  of  no  importance,  and  selected  from  mere  geogra- 
phical consideratians,  which  might  well  be  disregarded 
in  a  coiuitry  enjoying  such  locomotive  facilities.    An 
iinnient^e  sacrifice  is  then  required  from  those  men  of 
independent  fortune,  who,  for  patriotic  motives,  must 
leave  the  best  society  of  a  large  city,  to  spend  the  win- 

8 


i-* 


I 
1, 

1^: 


^ 


// 


86     LECTURES  AT  THE  LOWELL  INSTITUTE.    ClIAP.  v. 


ter  in  some  remote  spot  in  the  discharge  of  public  du- 
ties. 

I  had  been  invited  when  in  England  by  Mr.  Lowell, 
trustee  and  director  of  a  richly  endowed  literary  and 
scientific  institution  in  this  city,  to  deliver  a  course  of 
twelve  lectures  on  geology  during  the  present  autumn. 
According  to  the  conditions  of  the  bequest,  the  public 
have  gratuitous  admission  to  these  lectures;  but  by 
several  judicious  restrictions,  such  as  requiring  applica- 
tions for  tickets  to  be  made  some  weeks  before,  and 
compUance  with  other  rules,  the  trustee  has  obviated 
much  of  the  inconvenience  arising  from  this  privilege, 
for  it  is  well  known  that  a  class  which  pays  nothing  is 
irregular  and  careless  in  its  attendance.  As  the  num- 
ber of  tickets  granted  for  my  lectures  amounted  to 
4500,  and  the  class  usually  attending  consisted  of  more 
than  3000  persons,  it  was  necessary  to  divide  them  into 
two  sets,  and  repeat  to  one  of  them  the  next  afternoon 
the  lecture  delivered  on  the  preceding  evening.  It  is 
by  no  means  uncommon  for  professors  who  have  not 
the  attraction  of  novelty,  or  the  advantage  which  I 
happened  to  enjoy,  of  coming  from  a  great  distance,  to 
command  audiences  in  this  institution  as  numerous  as 
that  above  alluded  to.  The  subjects  of  their  discourses 
are  various,  such  as  natural  history,  chemistry,  the  fine 
arts,  natural  theology,  and  many  others.  Among  my 
hearers  were  persons  of  both  sexes,  of  every  station  in 
society,  from  the  most  affluent  and  eminent  in  the  va- 
rious learned  professions  to  the  humblest  mechanics,  aU 
well  dressed  and  observing  the  utmost  decorum. 

The  theatres  were  never  in  high  favour  here,  and 
most  of  them  have  been  turned  to  various  secular  and 
ecclesiastical    uses,  and  among   others    into  lecture 


=■} 


Wiw 


Chap.  v. 


INFLUENCE    OF    ORAL    INSTRUCTION. 


87 


re,  and 
ar  and 
lecture 


rooms,  to  which  many  of  the  public  resort  for  aniusc- 
nient  as  they  might  formerly  have  done  to  a  play,  after 
the  labours  of  the  day  are  over.  If  the  selection  of 
teachers  be  in  good  hands,  institutions  of  this  kind  can- 
not fail  to  exert  a  powerful  influence  in  improving  the  taste 
and  intellectual  condition  of  the  people,  especially  where 
college  is  quitted  at  an  early  age  for  the  business  of  ac- 
tive life,  and  where  there  is  always  danger  in  a  com- 
mercial community  that  the  desire  of  money-making 
may  be  carried  to  excess.  It  is,  moreover,  peculiarly 
desirable  in  a  democratic  state,  where  the  public  mind 
is  apt  to  be  exclusively  absorbed  in  politics,  and  in  a 
country  where  the  free  competition  of  rival  sects  has  a 
tendency  to  produce  not  indiflerentism,  as  some  at 
home  may  be  disposed  to  think,  but  too  much  excite- 
ment in  religious  matters. 

We  are  informed  by  Mr.  Everett,  late  governor  of 
Massachusetts  (since  minister  of  the  U.  S.  in  England), 
that  before  the  existence  of  the  Lowell  Foundation, 
twenty-six  courses  of  lectures  were  dehvered  in  Boston, 
without  including  those  which  consisted  of  less  than 
eight  lectures,  and  these  courses  were  attended  in  the 
aggregate  by  about  13,500  persons.  But  notwithstand- 
ing the  popularity  of  this  form  of  instruction,  he 
means  of  the  Uterary  and  scientific  institutions  of  the 
city  were  wholly  inadequate  to  hold  out  a  liberal  and 
certain  reward  to  men  of  talent  and  learning.  There 
were  some  few  instances  of  continuous  courses  deliver- 
ed by  men  of  eminence ;  but  the  task  more  commonly 
devolved  upon  individuals  who  cultivated  the  art  of 
speaking  merely  to  become  the  vehicles  of  second- 
hand information,  and  who  were  not  entitled  to  speak 


i 


f 

I? 

s 


if 


i 


/ 


^ 


/ 


88 


INFLUENCE    OF   OllAL    INSTRUCTION.         CiuP.  V. 


with  authority,  and  from  the  fuhiess  of  their  own 
knowledge.* 

Tlie  rich  who  have  liad  a  liberal  education,  who 
know  how  to  select  the  best  books,  and  can  aiford  to 
purchase  them,  who  can  retreat  into  the  quiet  of  their 
libraries  from  the  noise  of  their  children,  and,  if  they 
please,  obtain  the  aid  of  private  tuition,  may  doubt  the 
utility  of  public  lectures  on  the  fine  arts,  history,  and 
the  physical  sciences.  But  oral  instruction  is,  in  fact, 
the  only  means  by  which  the  great  mass  of  the 
middling  and  lower  classes  can  have  their  thoughts 
turned  to  these  subjects,  and  it  is  the  fault  of  the  high- 
er classes  if  the  information  they  receive  be  unsound, 
and  if  the  business  of  the  teacher  be  not  held  in  higli 
honour.  The  whole  body  of  the  clergy  in  every  coun- 
try, and,  vmder  popular  forms  of  government,  the 
leading  politicians,  have  been  in  all  ages  convinced  that 
they  must  avail  themselves  of  this  method  of  teaching, 
if  they  would  influence  both  high  and  low.  No  the- 
ological dogma  is  so  abstruse,  no  doctrine  of  political 
economy  or  legislative  science  so  difficult,  as  to  be 
deemed  unfit  to  be  preached  from  the  pulpit,  or  incul- 
cated on  the  hustings.  The  invention  of  printing,  fol- 
lowed by  the  rapid  and  general  dispersion  of  the  cheap 
daily  newspaper,  or  the  religious  tract,  have  been  by 
no  means  permitted  to  supersede  the  instrumentahty  of 
oral  teaching,  and  the  powerful  sympathy  and  excite- 
ment created  by  congregated  numbers.  If  the  leading 
patrons  and  cultivators  of  literature  and  physical  science 
neglect  this  ready  and  efficacious  means  of  interesting 
the  multitude  in  their  pursuits,  they  are  wanting  to 


*  See  "  Everett's  Memoir  of  John  Lowell."     Boston,  1840. 


Chap.  v.     FUNDS    SUNK    IN   COSTLY   BUILDINGS. 


89 


themselves,  and  have  no  right  to  complain  of  the  apa- 
thy or  indifference  of  the  public. 

To  obtain  the  services  of  eminent   men  engaged 
in  original  researches,  for  the  delivery  of  systematic 
courses  of  lectures,  is  impossible  without  the  command 
of  much  larger  funds  than  are  usually  devoted  to  this 
object.     When  it  is  stated  that  the  fees  at  the  Lowell 
Institute  at  Boston  are  on  a  scale  more  than  three 
times  higher  than  the  remuneration  awarded  to  the 
best  literary  and  scientific  public  lecturers  in  London,  it 
will  at  first  be  thought  hopeless  to  endeavour  to  carry 
similar  plans  into  execution  in  other  large  cities,  whe- 
ther at  home  or  in  the  United  States.    In  reality,  how- 
ever, the  sum  bequeathed  by  the  late  Mr.  John  Lowell 
for  his  foundation,   though  munificent,   was    by  no 
means  enormous,  not  much  exceeding  70,000/.,  which, 
according  to  the  usual  fate  awaiting  donations  for  edu- 
cational objects,  would  have  been  all  swallowed  up  in 
the  erection  of  costly  buildings,  after  which  the  learned 
would  be  imdted  to  share  the  scanty  leavings  of  the 
"  Committee  of  Taste,"  and  the  merciless  architect, 
"leliquias  Danaum  atque  immitis  Achillei."    But  in 
the  present  case,  the  testator  provided  in  his  will  that 
not  a  single  dollar  should  be  spent  in  brick  and  mortar, 
in  consequence  of  which  proviso,  a  spacious  room  was 
at  once  hired,  and  the  intentions  of  the  donor  carried 
immediately  into  effect,  without  a  year's  delay. 

If  there  be  any  who  imagine  that  a  donation  might 
be  so  splendid  as  to  render  an  anti-building  clause  su- 
perfluous, let  them  remember  the  history  of  the  Girard 
bef[uest  in  Philadelphia.  Half  a  million  sterling,  with 
the  express  desire  of  the  testator  that  the  expenditure 
on  architectural  ornament  should  be  moderate !     Yet 

8* 


// 


90 


SINKING    OF    EDUCATIONAL    FUNDS        Chap.  V. 


this  vast  sum  is  so  nearly  consumed,  that  it  is  doubtful 
whether  the  remaining  funds  will  suffice  for  the  com- 
pletion of  the  palace—  splendid,  indeed,  but  extremely 
ill-fitted  for  a  school-house  !  It  is  evident  that  when  a 
passion  so  strong  as  that  for  building  is  to  be  resisted, 
total  abstinence  alone,  as  in  the  case  of  spirituous  li- 
quors, will  prove  an  adequate  safeguard.  In  the  "  old 
country,"  the  same  fatal  propensity  has  stood  in  the 
way  of  all  the  most  spirited  efforts  of  modern  times  to 
establish  and  endow  new  institutions  for  the  diffusion  of 
knowledge.  It  is  well  known  that  the  sum  expended 
in  the  puichase  of  the  ground,  and  in  the  erection  of 
that  part  of  University  College,  London,  the  exterior  of 
which  is  nearly  complete,  exceeded  100,000^,  one-third 
of  which  was  spent  on  the  portico  and  dome,  or  the 
purely  ornamental,  the  rooms  under  the  dome  having 
remained  useless,  and  not  even  fitted  up  at  the  expira- 
tion of  fifteen  years.  When  the  professor  of  chemistry 
enquired  for  the  chimney  of  his  laboratory,  he  was  in- 
formed that  there  was  none,  and  to  remove  the  defect,  a 
flue  was  run  up  which  encroached  on  a  handsome 
staircase,  and  destroyed  the  symmetry  of  the  architect's 
design.  Still  greater  was  the  dismay  of  the  anatomical 
professor  on  learning  that  his  lecture  room  was  to  con- 
form to  the  classical  model  of  an  ancient  theatre,  de- 
signed for  the  recitation  of  Greek  plays.  Sir  Charles 
Bell  remarked  that  an  anatomical  theatre,  to  be  perfect, 
should  approach  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  shape  of  a 
well,  that  every  student  might  look  down  and  see  dis- 
tinctly the  subject  under  demonstration.  At  a  consider- 
able cost  the  room  was  altered,  so  as  to  serve  the  ends 
for  which  it  was  wanted. 
The  liberal  sums  contributed  by  the  public  for  the 


Chap.  v. 


IN   COSTLY    BUILDINGS. 


91 


•  the 


foundation  of  a  rival  college  wore  expended  in  like 
manner  long  before  the  academical  body  came  into  ex- 
istence. When  the  professor  of  chemistry  at  King's 
College  asked  for  his  laboratory,  he  was  told  it  had 
been  entirely  forgotten  in  the  plan,  but  that  he  might 
take  the  kitchen  on  the  floor  below,  and  by  ingenious 
macliinery  carry  up  his  apparatus  for  illustrating  ex- 
periments, through  a  trap  door  into  an  upper  story, 
where  his  lecture  room  was  placed. 

Still  these  collegiate  buildings,  in  support  of  which 
the  public  came  forward  so  liberally,  were  left,  like  the 
Girard  College,  half  finished ;  whereas,  if  the  same 
funds  had  been  devoted  to  the  securing  of  teachers  of 
high  acquirements,  station,  character,  and  celebrity; 
and  if  rooms  of  moderate  dimensions  had  been  at  first 
hired,  while  the  classes  of  pupils  remained  small,  a 
generation  would  not  have  been  lost,  the  new  Institu- 
tions would  have  risen  more  rapidly  to  that  high  rank 
which  they  are  one  day  destined  to  attain,  and  testa- 
mentary bequests  would  have  flowed  in  more  copiously 
for  buildings  well  adapted  to  the  known  and  ascertain- 
ed wants  of  the  establishment.  None  would  then 
grudge  the  fluted  column,  the  swelling  dome,  and  the 
stately  portico ;  and  literature  and  science  would  con- 
tinue to  be  the  patrons  of  architecture,  without  being 
its  victims. 

Prcscott,  in  his  admirable  work  on  the  Conquest  of 
Mexico,  remarks,  when  discussing  the  extent  of  the 
ancient  Aztec  civilisation,  that  the  progress  made  by 
the  Mexicans  in  astronomy,  and  especially  the  fact  of 
their  having  a  general  board  for  public  education  and 
the  line  arts,  proves  more  in  favour  of  their  advance- 
ment, than  the  noble  architectural  monuments  which 


/ 


J 


Od 


BLIND    ASYLUM. 


Chap.  v. 


they  and  their  kindred  tribes  erected.  "  Architecture," 
he  observes,  "  is  a  sensual  gratification,  and  addresses  it- 
self to  the  eye  ;  it  is  the  form  in  which  the  resources 
of  a  semi-civilised  people  are  most  likely  to  be  lavished."* 

Mr.  John  Lowell,  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  after 
having  carefully  studied  the  educational  establishments 
of  his  own  country,  visited  London  in  1833,  and  having 
sojourned  there  some  months,  paying  a  visit  to  the  Uni- 
versity of  Cambridge  and  other  places,  he  pursued  his 
travels  in  the  hope  of  exploring  India  and  China.  On 
his  way  he  passed  through  Egypt,  where,  being  at- 
tacked, while  engaged  in  making  a  collection  of  an- 
tiquities, by  an  intermittent  fever,  of  which  he  soon  af- 
terwards died,  he  drew  up  his  last  will  in  1835,  amidst 
the  ruins  of  Thebes,  leaving  half  of  his  noble  fortune 
for  the  foundation  of  a  Literary  Institute  in  his  na- 
tive city.  It  has  already  appeared  how  admirably  he 
appreciated  the  exact  point  of  "semi-civilisation" 
which  tlie  Anglo-Saxon  race  had  then  attained  on  both 
sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

I  spent  an  agreeable  day  at  Cambridge,  visiting  sev- 
eral of  the  professors  at  Harvard  University,  and  hear- 
ing one  of  them,  Henry  Ware,  author  of  "  The  Chris- 
tian Character,"  a  work  reprinted,  and  much  read  in 
England,  preach  a  sermon  in  the  College  Chapel.  His 
text,  "  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself,"  led 
him  to  treat  of  self-love,  and  to  explain  how  this  natu- 
ral passion  might  be  indulged  to  any  extent,  provided,  in 
obedience  to  the  divine  commandment,  our  love  for  others 
increases  in  the  like  ratio.  I  heard  afterwards,  with 
great  regret,  of  the  death  of  this  able  and  amiable  man. 

In  the  Blind  Asylum  I  saw  Laura  Bridgman,  now 

*  Conquest  of  Mexico,  vol.  i.  p.  155. 


i 


Chap.  v. 


LOWELL    FACTORIES. 


93 


in  her  twelfth  year.  At  the  age  of  two  she  lost  her 
eight  and  hearing  by  a  severe  illness,  but  although 
deaf,  dumb,  and  blind,  her  mind  has  been  so  ad- 
vanced by  the  method  of  instruction  pursued  by  Dr. 
Howe,  that  she  shows  more  intelligence  and  quickness 
of  feeUng  than  many  girls  of  the  same  age  who  are  in 
full  possession  of  all  their  senses.  The  excellent  reports 
of  Dr.  Howe,  on  the  gradual  development  of  her  mind, 
have  been  long  before  the  public,  and  have  recently 
been  cited  by  Mr.  Dickens,  together  with  some  judicious 
observations  of  bis  own.  Perhaps  no  one  of  the  cases 
of  a  somewhat  analogous  nature,  on  which  Dugald 
Stewart  and  others  have  philosophised,  has  furnished 
so  many  new  and  valuable  facts  illustrating  the  extent 
to  which  all  intellectual  development  is  dependent  on 
the  instrumentality  of  the  senses  in  discerning  external 
objects,  and,  at  the  same  time,  in  how  small  a  degree 
the  relative  acuteness  of  the  organs  of  sense  determine 
the  moral  and  intellectual  superiority  of  the  individual. 
Nov.  15. — Went  twenty-six  miles  to  the  north  of 
Boston,  by  an  excellent  railway,  to  the  manufacturing 
town  of  Lowell,  wliich  has  sprung  up  entirely  in  the 
last  sixteen  years,  and  now  contains  about  20,000  in- 
habitants. The  mills  are  remarkably  clean,  and  well 
warmed,  and  almost  all  for  making  cotton  and  woollen 
goods,  which  are  exported  to  the  West.  The  young 
women  from  the  age  of  eighteen  to  twenty-five,  who 
attend  to  the  spinning-wheels,  are  good-looking  and 
neatly  dressed,  chiefly  the  daughters  of  New  England 
farmers,  sometimes  of  the  poorer  clergy.  They  belong, 
therefore,  to  a  very  different  class  from  our  manufac- 
turing population,  and  after  remaining  a  few  years  in 
the  factory,  return  to  their  homes,  and  usually  marry. 


I       I . 


94 


LOWELL    FACTORIES. 


Chap.  ▼. 


We  are  told  that,  to  work  in  these  factories  is  consid- 
ered far  more  ehgible  for  a  young  woman  than  domes- 
tic service,  as  they  can  save  more,  and  have  stated 
hours  of  work  (twelve  hours  a  day  !),  after  which  they 
are  at  liberty.  Their  moral  character  stands  very  high, 
and  a  girl  is  paid  off,  if  the  least  doubt  exists  on  that 
point.  Boarding-houses,  usually  kept  by  widows,  are 
attached  to  each  mill,  in  which  the  operatives  are  re- 
quired to  board ;  the  men  and  women  being  separate. 
This  regard  for  the  welfare  and  conduct  of  the  work- 
people when  they  are  not  on  actual  duty  is  compara- 
tively rare  in  England,  where  the  greater  supply  of 
labour  would  render  such  interference  and  kind  su- 
perintendence much  more  practicable.  Still  we  could 
not  expect  that  the  results  would  be  equally  satisfactory 
with  us,  on  account  of  the  lower  grade  of  the  opera- 
tives, and  the  ignorance  of  the  lower  classes  in  Eng- 
land. In  regard  to  the  order,  dress,  and  cleanliness  of 
the  people,  these  merits  are  also  exemplified  in  the  rural 
districts  of  Lancashire,  and  it  is  usually  in  our  large 
towns  alone,  that  the  work  people  are  unhealthy  and 
squalid,  especially  where  a  number  of  the  poor  Irish 
live  crowded  together  in  bad  dwellings. 

The  factories  at  Lowell  are  not  only  on  a  great 
scale,  but  have  been  so  managed  as  to  yield  high  prof- 
its, a  fact  which  should  be  impressed  on  the  mind  of 
every  foreigner  who  visits  them,  lest,  after  admiring  the 
gentility  of  manner  and  dress  of  the  women  and  men 
employed,  he  should  go  away  with  the  idea  that  he 
had  been  seeing  a  model  mill,  or  a  set  of  gentlemen  and 
ladies,  playing  at  factory  for  their  amusement.  There 
are  few  children  employed,  and  those  under  fifteen  are 
compelled  by  law  to  go  to  school  three  months  in  the 


Chap.  t. 


NATIONAL    SCHOOLS. 


96 


of 

the 

men 

t  he 

and 

lere 

are 

the 


year,  under  penalty  of  a  heavy  fine.  If  this  regulation 
is  infringed,  informers  are  not  wanting,  for  there  is  a 
strong  sympathy  in  the  public  mind  with  all  acts  of 
the  legislature,  enforcing  education.  The  Bostonians 
submit  to  pay  annually  for  public  instruction  in  their 
city  alone,  the  sum  of  30,000^.  sterling,  which  is  about 
equal  to  the  parliamentary  grant  of  this  year  (1841)  for 
the  whole  of  England,  while  the  sum  raised  for  free 
schools  in  the  state  this  year,  by  taxes  for  wages  of 
teachers,  and  their  board,  and  exclusive  of  funds  for 
building,  exceeds  100,000^.  sterling. 

The  law  ordains,  that  every  district  containing  fifty 
families  shall  maintain  one  school,  for  the  support  of 
which  the  inhabitants  are  required  to  tax  themselves, 
and  to  appoint  committees  annually  for  managing  the 
funds,  and  choosing  their  own  schoolmasters.  The 
Bible  is  allowed  to  be  read  in  all,  and  is  actually  read 
in  nearly  all  the  schools ;  but  the  law  prohibits  the  use 
of  books  "  calculated  to  favour  the  tenets  of  any  par- 
ticular sect  of  Christians."  Parents  and  guardians  are 
expected  to  teach  their  own  children,  or  to  procure 
them  to  be  taught,  what  they  beheve  to  be  religious 
truth,  and  for  this  purpose,  besides  family  worship  and 
the  pulpit,  there  are  Sunday-schools.  The  system 
works  well  among  this  church-building  and  church- 
going  population. 

As  there  is  no  other  region  in  Anglo-saxondom,  con- 
taining 750,000  souls,  where  national  education  has 
been  carried  so  far,  it  is  important  to  enquire  to  what 
combination  of  causes  its  success  is  mainly  to  be  attrib- 
uted. First,  there  is  no  class  in  want  or  extreme  pov- 
erty here,  partly  because  the  faciUty  of  migrating  to 
the  we«t,  for  those  who  are  without  employment,  is  so 


06 


EQUALITY    OF    SECTS. 


Chap,  v 


great,  and  also,  in  part,  from  the  check  to  improvi- 
dent marriages,  created  by  the  high  standard  of  Hving 
to  which  the  lowest  work-people  aspire,  a  standard 
which  education  is  raising-  higher  and  higher  from  day 
to  day.  Secondly,  I  have  often  heard  politicians  of  op- 
posite parties  declare,  that  there  is  no  safety  for  the  re- 
public, now  that  the  electoral  suffrage  has  been  so  much 
extended,  unless  every  exertion  is  made  to  raise  the 
moral  and  intellectual  condition  of  the  masses.  The 
fears  entertained  by  the  rich  of  the  dangers  of  igno- 
rance, is  the  only  good  result  which  I  could  discover 
tending  to  counterbalance  the  enormous  preponderance 
of  evil  arising  in  the  United  States  from  so  near  an  ap- 
proach to  universal  suffrage.  Thirdly,  the  pohtical 
and  social  equality  of  all  religious  sects, — a  blessing 
which  the  New  Englanders  do  not  owe  to  the  Ameri- 
can revolution,  for  it  was  fully  recognised  and  enjoyed 
under  the  supremacy  of  the  British  crown.  This  equal- 
ity tends  to  remove  the  greatest  stumbling  block,  still 
standing  in  the  way  of  national  -instruction  in  Great 
Britain,  where  we  allow  one  generation  after  another 
of  the  lower  classes  to  grow  up  without  being  taught 
good  morals,  good  behaviour,  and  the  knowledge  of 
things  useful  and  ornamental,  because  we  cannot  all 
agree  as  to  the  precise  theological  doctrines  in  which 
they  are  to  be  brought  up.  The  religious  toleration  of 
the  different  sects  towards  each  other  in  Massachusetts 
is,  I  fear,  accompanied  by  as  little  Christian  charity  as 
at  home,  and  families  are  often  divided,  and  the  best 
relations  of  private  life  disturbed,  by  the  bitterness  of 
sectarian  dogmatism  and  jealousy ;  but,  politically,  all 
sects  are  ready  to  unite  against  the  encroachments 
of  any  other,  and  a  great  degree  of  religious  freedom 


■\ 


Chap.  v. 


THANKSGIVING-DAY. 


97 


is  enjoyed,  in  consequence  of  there  being  no  sect  to 
which  it  is  ungenteel  to  belong,  no  consciences  sorely 
templed  by  ambition  to  conform  to  a  more  fashionable 
creed. 

In  New  York  the  Roman  Catholic  priests  have  re- 
cently agitated  with  no  small  success  for  a  separate  al- 
lotment of  their  share  of  the  education  fund.  They 
have  allied  themselves,  as  in  the  Belgian  revolution, 
with  the  extreme  democracy  to  carry  their  point,  and 
may  materially  retard  the  general  progress  of  educa- 
tion. But  there  is  no  reason  to  apprehend  that  any 
one  sect  in  New  England  will  have  power  to  play  the 
same  game ;  and  these  states  are  the  chief  colonizers 
of  the  West — gentts  cunabula,  by  the  rapidity  of 
whose  multiplication  and  progress  in  civilization  the 
future  prospects  of  the  whole  confederacy  of  republics 
will  be  mainly  determined. 

During  our  stay  at  Boston  the  citizens  gave  a  splen- 
did ball  to  the  Prince  de  Joinville,  and  the  Mayor  po- 
litely sent  us  tickets  of  invitation,  which  gave  me  an 
opportunity  of  satisfying  myself  that  foreigners  have 
not  said  too  much  of  the  beauty  of  the  young  Ameri- 
can ladies.  In  general  I  was  so  much  occupied  with 
my  lectures,  or  in  communicating  to  the  Geological  So- 
ciety of  London  some  of  the  results  of  my  observations 
during  my  late  tour,  that  I  had  no  time  to  enter  into 
society,  or  to  accept  the  hospitalities  of  the  inhabitants. 
As  soon  as  it  was  understood  that  I  wished  to  Uve  qui- 
etly, all  pressing  invitations  were  politely  abstained 
from  until  I  had  finished  my  course  of  lectures  ;  and, 
aftenvards,  when  I  found  it  necessary  to  decline  a  large 
number  of  them,  no  offence  was  taken. 

The  twenty-fiflh  of  November  was  appointed  by  the 

9 


4 


SOCIETY    IN    B08T0N. 


Chap  r. 


Governor  of  the  Stale  to  he  what  is  here  called  Thanks- 
givinjj  Day — an  insititutioii  us  old  us  the  times  of  the 
Pilgrim  Fathers,  one  day  in  the  year  heing  sot  apart 
for  tlianksgiving  for  the  iiKMcios  of  the  past  year.  An 
a  festival  it  stands  very  much  in  the  place  of  Christmas 
Day  aa  kept  in  England  and  (lermany,  heing  always 
in  the  winter,  and  every  hody  going  to  church  in  the 
morning  and  meeting  in  large  family  parties  in  the 
evening.  To  one  of  these  we  were  most  kindly  wel- 
comed; and  the  reception  which  we  met  with  here  and 
in  the  few  faniilies  to  which  w«)  had  letters  of  introduc- 
tion, made  us  entirely  forget  that  we  were  foreigners. 
Seveial  of  our  new  acquaintances  indeed  had  travelled 
in  England  and  on  the  Continent,  and  were  in  con- 
stant correspondence  with  our  own  literary  and  scien- 
tiuc  friends,  so  that  we  were  always  hearing  from  them 
some  personal  news  of  those  with  whom  we  were  most 
intimate  in  Europe,  and  we  often  reflected  with  sur- 
prise in  how  many  parts  of  England  we  t^hould  have 
felt  less  at  home. 

I  remember  an  eminent  English  writer  once  saying 
to  me,  when  he  had  just  read  a  recently-published  book 
on  the  United  States,  "I  wonder  the  author  went  so 
far  to  see  disagreeable  people,  when  there  are  so  many 
of  them  at  home."  It  would  certainly  be  strange  if 
persons  of  refined  habits,  even  without  being  fastidious, 
who  travel  to  see  life,  and  think  it  their  duty,  with  a 
view  of  studying  character,  to  associate  indiscriminately 
with  all  kinds  of  people,  visiting  the  first  strangers  who 
ask  them  to  their  houses,  and  choosing  their  com- 
panions without  reference  to  congeniality  of  taste,  pur- 
suits, manners,  or  opinions,  did  not  find  society  in  their 
own  or  any  other  country  in  the  world  intolerable. 


K» 


Caja.n 


SLEIOH-DRIVliva    AT    BOSTON. 


90 


r 


CHAPTER  VI. 


'     ? 


«• 


Fall  of  Sime  and  SUigh-driting  at  Bnaton.—JoHrnefj  to  New  lla- 
i-eii. — Ichthijolitea  nf  Durham,  Connecticut. —  Atfe  of  Red  Sund- 
atone. — Income  of  Fanneiti. — Baltimore. —  Wanhington. — National 
Miiiteum. — Natural  Impedimenta  to  the  Growth  of  Waahinutnr,. — 
Why  choaen  for  the  Capital, — Richmond,  Virginia. — EJ'erIa  of 
Slace-lahour. — Low  Region  on  the  Atlantic:  Border,  occupied  by 
Tertiary  Strata, — Infnaorial  Bed  at  Richmond. — Miocene  Sheila 
and  Corala  in  the  Clijfaofthe  Jamea  Ricrr  compared  with  Foaaila 
of  the  European  Crag  and  Faluna. — Amihsy  of  Forma  and  Dif- 
ference of  Speciea. — Proportion  of  Sperira. — Commencement  of 
the  present  Geographical  Distrihution  of  MoUusca. 

Nov.  29. 1811. — Although  we  were  iu  the  latitude 
of  Rome,  and  there  were  no  mountains  near  us,  we  had 
a  lioavy  fall  of  snow  at  Boston  this  day,  followed  by 
bright  sunshine  and  hard  frost.  It  was  a  cheerful 
fccene  to  see  the  sleighs  gliding  noiselessly  about  the 
streets,  and  to  hear  the  bells,  tied  to  the  horses'  heads, 
warning  the  passer-by  of  their  swift  approach.  As  it 
was  now  the  best  season  to  geologise  in  the  southern 
States,  I  determined  to  make  a  ilight  in  that  direction ; 
and  we  had  gone  no  farther  than  New  Haven  before 
we  found  that  all  the  snow  had  disappeared.  I  accord- 
ingly took  the  opportunity  when  there  of  making  a  ge- 
ological excursion,  with  Mr.  Silliman,  jun..  Professor 
Hubbard,  and  Mr.  Whelpley,  to  examine  the  red  sand- 
stone strata,  containing  Ichthyolites,  by  the  side  of  a 
small  waterfall  at  Middlefield,  one  mile  from  Durham, 
in  Connecticut.  The  remains  of  fish  occur  in  a  fine- 
grained slaty  sandstone,  black  and  bituminous,  about 
six  feet  thick,  which  alternates  with  a  coarse  conglom- 


;.^ 


/ 


100 


AGE    OF    RED   SANDSTONE. 


Chap,  vl 


I 


:\\ 


crate,  some  of  the  quartz  pebbles  being  two  or  three 
inches  in  diameter.  Small  fragments  of  fossil  wood  and 
a  ripple-marked  surface  were  observed  in  some  of  the 
strata  near  the  fossil-fish.  This  sandstone  is  newer 
than  the  coal,  but  we  have  not  yet  sulncient  data  to 
pronounce  very  decidedly  on  its  true  age.  The  foot- 
steps of  numerous  species  of  birds  afford  no  indication, 
because  in  Europe  we  have  as  yet  no  traces  of  birds  in 
rocks  of  such  high  antiquity,  and  consequently  no  cor- 
responding term  of  comparison.  As  to  the  fish,  they 
have  most  of  them  been  referred  to  the  genus  Paleo- 
niscus,  and  have  been  supposed,  therefore,  by  analogy, 
to  imply  that  the  Connecticut  deposit  is  of  the  age  of 
the  Magnesian  limestone  (Lower  New  Red  or  Permian 
Group  of  Europe).  But  Mr.  Redfield  has  expressed 
some  doubt  whether  these  American  fossils  might  not 


constitute  a  new,  though  allied  genus,   having  the 


scales,  and  apparently  the  vertebrae,  prolonged  to  a 
more  hmited  extent  into  the  upper  lobe  of  the  tail  than 
in  the  European  species.  In  the  language  of  M. 
Agassiz,  they  are  less  heterocercal  than  the  European 
Paleoniscus,  and,  therefore,  less  closely  related  to  that 
type  which  is  universal  in  tlie  more  ancient  or  paleozo- 
ic formatiors.  Sir  P.  Egertou,  who  confirms  these  re- 
marks of  Mr.  Redfield,  and  adds  other  distinctions, 
such  as  the  strong  and  conical  teeth,  and  the  smallness 
of  the  oral  aperture,  informs  me  that  in  the  five  or  six 
distinct  species  obtained  by  me  from  Durham,  Connec- 
ticut, he  finds  the  scales  to  be  smoother  than  in  the 
Paleonisci  of  the  Magnesian  limestone ;  for  the  latter 
have  their  scales  more  or  less  striated  and  serrated  on 
the  posterior  margins.  The  American  fossils  approxi- 
mate in  the  character  above  alluded  to,  or  in  having 


\ 


Chap.  vi. 


Chap.  vt. 


INCOME    OP   FARMERS. 


101 


or  three 
k^ood  and 
le  of  the 
is  newer 
t  data  to 
Che  foot- 
idication, 
f  birds  in 
y  no  cor- 
ish,  they 
IS  Paleo- 
analogy, 
le  age  of 
Permian 
expressed 
light  not 
ving  the 
ged  to  a 
tail  than 
c  of  M. 
European 

to  that 

paleozo- 
thcse  rc- 
|tinctions, 
mallness 
re  or  six 

Connec- 
in  the 
Ihe  latter 
[rated  on 
[approxi- 

having 


smooth  scales,  to  the  coal-measure  species,  so  that  the 
evidence  derived  ftom  Ichthyology  is  very  conflicting. 
Professoi"  H.  D.  Rogers  infers  from  his  brother's  dis- 
covery in  Virginia  of  shells  in  this  formation,  referred  to 
the  Posidonia  Kciiperi,  a  characteristic  species  of  the 
European  Trias,  that  the  Connecticut  sandstone  be- 
longs to  the  Upper  New  Red  or  Triassic  system. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Durliam  we  learnt  that  a 
snow-storm,  which  occurred  there  in  the  first  week  of 
October,  had  seriously  injured  the  woods,  weighing 
down  the  boughs  then  in  full  leaf,  and  snapping  off  the 
leading  shoots.  For  the  first  time  in  the  United  States 
I  heard  great  concern  expressed  for  the  damage  sus- 
tained by  the  timber,  which  is  beginning  to  grow 
scarce  in  New  England,  where  coal  is  dear. 

The  valley  of  the  Connecticut  presents  a  pleasing 
picture  of  a  rural  population,  where  there  is  neither 
poverty  nor  great  wealth.  I  was  told  by  well-informed 
persons,  that  if  the  land  and  stock  of  the  farmers  or 
small  proprietors  were  sold  off  and  invested  in  securities 
giving  six  per  cent,  interest,  their  average  incomes 
would  not  exceed  more  than  from  80/.  to  1201.  a  year. 
An  old  gentleman  who  lately  re-visited  Durham,  his  na- 
tive place,  after  an  absence  of  twenty-five  years,  told  me 
that  in  this  interval  the  large  families,  the  equal  sub- 
division of  the  paternal  estates  among  children,  and  the 
efforts  made  for  the  outfit  of  sons  migrating  to  the 
West,  had  sensibly  lowered  the  fortunes  of  the  Con- 
necticut yeomanry,  so  that  they  were  reduced  nearer  to 
the  condition  of  labourers  than  when  he  left  them. 

Pursuing  my  course  southwards,  I  found  that  the 
snow-storm  had  been  less  heavy  at  New  York,  still  less 
at  Philadelphia,  and  after  crossing  the  Susquehanna 

9* 


il 


102       WASHINGTON. — NATIONAL    MUSEUM.      Chap.  vi. 


<    I 


(Doc.  13.)  the  weather  began  to  resemble  that  of  an 
English  spring.  In  the  subtirbs  of  Baltimore,  tlie  lo- 
comDiive  engines  being  detached,  our  cars  were  drawn 
by  horses  on  a  railway  into  the  middle  of  the  town. 
Mf'iyland  was  the  first  slave  state  we  had  visited  ;  and 
at  Baltimore  we  were  reminded  for  the  first  time  of  the 
poorer  inhabitants  of  a  large  European  city  by  the 
mean  dwellings  and  dress  of  some  of  the  labouring 
class,  both  coloured  and  white. 

At  Washington  I  was  shown  the  newly-founded  na- 
tional museum,  in  which  the  objects  of  natiual  history 
and  other  treasures  collected  during  the  late  voyage  of 
discovery  to  the  Antarctic  regions,  the  South  Seas,  and 
California,  are  deposited.  Such  a  national  repository 
would  be  invaluable  at  Philadelphia,  New  York,  or 
Boston,  but  here  there  is  no  university,  no  classes  of 
students  in  science  or  literature,  no  philosophical  socie- 
ties, no  people  who  seem  to  have  any  leisure.  The 
members  of  Congress  rarely  have  town  residences  in 
this  place,  but,  leaving  their  families  in  large  cities, 
where  they  may  enjoy  more  refined  society,  they  live 
here  in  boarding-houses  until  their  political  duties  and 
the  session  are  over.  If  the  most  eminent  legislators 
and  statesmen,  the  lawyers  of  the  supreme  courts,  and 
the  foreign  ambassadors,  had  all  been  assembled  heie 
for  a  great  part  of  the  year  with  their  families,  in  a 
wealthy  and  flourishing  metropolis,  the  social  and  po- 
litical results  of  a  great  centre  of  influence  and  author- 
ity could  not  have  failed  to  be  most  beneficial.  Cir- 
cumstances pui^ely  accidental,  and  not  the  intentional 
jealousy  of  the  democracy,  have  checked  the  growth  of 
the  capital,  and  deprived  it  of  the  constitutional  ascen- 
dency which  it  might  otherwise  have  exerted.     Cou- 


\\ 


1.        ClIAP.  VI. 


Chap.  vi.      WASHINGTON,   WHY  THE   CAPITAL. 


103 


that  of  an 
ore,  the  lo- 
,veie  drawn 
f  the  town, 
isited ;  and 
time  of  the 
ity  by  the 
;  labouring 

bunded  na- 
Lual  history 
5  voyage  of 
I  Seas,  and 
1  repository 
,v  York,  or 
3  classes  of 
)hical  socie- 
sure.     The 
psidences  in 
arge  cities, 
they  live 
duties  and 
legislators 
courts,  and 
mbled  here 
nilies,  in  a 
ial  and  po- 
nd author- 
icial.     Cir- 
intentional 
growth  of 
nal  ascen- 
ed.     Coil- 


I 


gress  first  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  where  the  decla- 
ration of  independence  was  signed  ;  but  after  the  close 
of  the  revolutionary  war  in  June,  1783,  a  party  of  the 
disbanded  army  marched  to  that  city  to  demand  their 
arrears  of  pay,  and  surrounded  the  building  in  which 
the  representatives  of  the  people  were  sitting,  with  fixed 
bayonets  for  about  three  hours.  This  alarm  caused 
them  to  adjourn  and  meet  at  Princeton,  JNew  .Terse}', 
and  afterwards  to  seek  some  permanent  scat  of  gov- 
ernment. But  for  this  untoward  event,  Philadelphia 
might  have  remained  the  federal  metropolis,  and  in 
that  case  would  certainly  have  lifted  up  her  head  above 
other  cities  in  the  New  World — 

"  Quantiiin  Icnta  solent  inter  vibiiraa  cnpresGi." 

General  Washington  is  said  to  liave  selected  the 
present  site  of  the  capital  as  the  most  central  spot  on 
the  Atlantic  border,  being  midway  between  Maine  and 
Florida,  and  being  also  at  the  head  of  the  navigation 
of  a  great  river.  He  had  observed  that  all  the  other 
principal  cities  eastward  of  the  Alleghany  mountains 
had  sprung  up  on  similar  sites;  but  unfortunately  the 
estuary  of  the  Potomac  is  so  long  and  winding,  that  to 
ascend  from  its  mouth  to  Washinffton  is  said  often  to 
take  a  vessel  as  long  as  to  cross  from  Liverpool  to  the 
mouth  of  the  river.  Had  Annapolis,  which  is  only 
thirty  miles  distant,  been  chosen  as  the  capital,  it  is  be- 
lieved that  it  would,  ere  this,  have  contained  100,000 
inhabitants. 

We  were  present  at  an  animated  debate  in  the 
House  of  Rejjresentatives,  on  the  proposed  protective 
tnritT",  and  a  discussion  in  the  senate  on  "  VVays  and 
Means,"  both  carried  on  with  great  order  and  decorum. 
After  being  presented  to  the  President,  and  visiting 


f 


i  fa 


t     I 


.! 


104 


EFFECTS   OF   SLAVE-LABOUR. 


Chap.  vi. 


several  persons  to  whom  we  had  letters,  we  were 
warned  by  a  slight  sprinkling  of  snow  that  it  was  time 
to  depart  and  migrate  further  southwards.  Crossing 
the  Potomac,  therefore,  I  proceeded  to  Riclimond,  in 
Virginia,  where  I  resolved  to  sail  down  the  James 
River,  in  order  to  examine  the  geology  of  the  tertiary 
strata  on  its  shores. 

On  entering  the  station-house  of  a  railway  which 
was  to  carry  us  to  our  place  of  embarkation,  we  found 
a  room  with  only  two  chairs  in  it.  One  of  these  was 
occupied  by  a  respectable-looking  woman,  who  imme- 
diately rose,  intending  to  give  it  up  to  me,  an  act  be- 
traying that  she  was  English,  and  newly-arrived,  as  an 
American  gentleman,  even  if  already  seated,  would 
have  felt  it  necessary  to  rise  and  offer  the  chair  to  any 
woman,  whether  mistress  or  maid,  and  she,  as  a  mat- 
ter of  course,  would  have  accepted  the  proffered  seat. 
After  1  had  gone  out,  she  told  my  wife  that  she  and 
her  husband  had  come  a  few  months  before  from  Hert- 
fordshire, hoping  to  get  work  in  Virginia,  but  she  had 
discovered  that  there  was  no  room  here  for  poor  white 
people,  who  were  despised  by  the  very  negroes  if  they 
laboured  with  their  own  hands.  She  had  found  herself 
looked  down  upon,  even  for  carrying  her  own  child,  for 
they  said  she  ought  to  hire  a  black  nurse.  These  poor 
emigrants  were  now  anxious  to  settle  in  some  free 
state. 

As  another  exemplification  of  the  impediments  to  im- 
provement existing  here,  I  was  told  that  a  New  Eng- 
land agriculturist  had  bought  a  farm  on  the  south  side 
of  the  James  river,  sold  off  all  the  slaves,  and  intro- 
duced Irish  labourers,  being  persuaded  that  their  ser- 
vices would  prove  more  economical  than  slave-labour. 


\ 


Chap,  vt- 


Chap.  VI.        MIOCENE    STRATA    OP    VIRGINIA. 


106 


•8,  we  were 

it  was  time 

s.     Crossing 

ichmond,  in 

the  Jameg 

the  tertiary 

ilway  which 
Dn,  we  found 
of  these  was 
I,  who  imme- 
e,  an  act  be- 
arrived,  as  an 
leated,  would 
chair  to  any 
tie,  as  a  mat- 
noflered  seat. 
!  that  she  and 
)re  from  Hert- 
but  she  had 
for  poor  white 
groes  if  they 
found  herself 
own  child,  for 
These  poor 
in  some  free 

diments  to  im- 
a  New  Eng- 
the  south  side 
res,  and  intro- 
that  their  ser- 
n  slave-labour. 


m 


The  scheme  was  answering  well,  till,  by  the  end  of  the 
third  year,  the  Irish  became  very  much  dissatisfied  with 
their  position,  feeling  degraded  by  losing  the  respect  of 
the  whites,  and  being  exposed  to  the  contempt  of  the 
surrounding  negroes.  They  had,  in  %ct,  lowered  them- 
selves by  the  habitual  performance  of  offices  which, 
south  of  the  Potomac,  are  assigned  to  hereditary 
bondsmen. 

Miocene  Tertiary  Strata  of  Virginia. 

We  have  already  seen  that  between  the  hilly  coun- 
try and  the  Atlantic  there  occurs  in  the  United  States, 
a  low  and  nearly  level  region  (a,  b,  fig.  5,  p.  74.),  occu- 
pied principally  by  beds  of  marl,  clay,  and  sand  of  the 
cretaceous  and  tertiary  formations.  Maclure,  in  1817, 
in  his  work  on  geology,  laid  down  with  no  small  accu- 
racy on  a  coloured  map  the  general  limits  of  this  great 
plain,  and  of  the  granitic  district  lying  immediately  to 
the  westward.  He  also  pointed  out  that  at  the  junc- 
tion of  these  great  geological  provinces  (a,  b,  and  b,  c, 
fig.  5.),  at  the  point  /t,  as  indicated  in  the  section,  al- 
most all  the  great  rivers  descend  suddenly  by  falls  or 
rapids  of  moderate  height,  as  the  Delaware  at  Trenton, 
the  Schuylkill  near  Philadelphia,  the  Potomac  near 
Washington,  the  James  river  at  Richmond,  Virginia, 
the  Savannah  at  Augusta  in  Georgia,  and  many  others. 
At  these  points,  therefore,  the  navigation  is  stopped, 
and  a  great  many  large  cities  have  sprung  up  precisely 
at  this  limit,  so  that  the  line  which  marks  the  western 
boundary  of  the  tertiary,  and  the  eastern  of  the  grani- 
tic region,  is  one  of  no  small  geological,  geographical, 
and  political  interest. 


I  I 


\ 


106 


MIOCENE    STRATA   OP    VIRGINIA.       Chap.  TI. 


The  general  elevation  of  the  great  plain  does  not 
exceed  a  hundred  feet,  although  sometimes  considera- 
bly higher.  Its  width  in  the  middle  and  southern 
states  is  very  commonly  from  100  to  150  miles.  The 
tide,  except  in  the  more  southern  states,  flows  entirely 
across  it,  and  the  rivers  intersecting  it  form  large  estu- 
aries, which  may  have  been  due  to  the  facility  with 
which  the  incoherent  materials  of  the  cliflTs  were  un- 
dermined and  swept  away,  a  process  of  waste  which  is 
still  going  on. 

Throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  Atlantic  plain, 
the  cretaceous  rocks,  if  present,  are  concealed  by  the 
overlying  tertiary  deposits,  which  consist  chiefly  of  Mi- 
ocene strata,  extending  from  Delaware  bay  to  the  Cape 
Fear  river,  and  occupying  portions  of  Delaware,  Mary- 
land, Virginia,  and  North  Carolina,  an  area  about  400 
miles  long  from  north  to  south,  and  varying  in  breadth 
from  10  to  70  miles.  There  are,  besides,  some  patches 
of  the  Miocene  formation  in  South  Carolina  and  Geor- 
gia, where  the  Eocene  or  older  tertiary  deposits  pre- 
dominate almost  exclusively. 

I  began  my  examination  of  these  tertiary  strata  in 
the  suburbs  of  Richmond,  Virginia,  where  I  saw  in 
Shockoe  creek  some  Eocene  marls  with  characteristic 
shells,  on  which  re[X)sed  Miocene  red  clay  and  sand. 
Between  the  two  formations  a  remarkable  bed  of  yel- 
low siliceous  clay  intervenes,  from  twelve  to  twenty- 
five  feet  thick,  marked  on  the  surface  by  a  band  of 
meagre  vegetation.  This  clay  was  found  'vy  Pi  jfessor 
W.  B.  Rogers  to  be  entirely  composed  of  the  siliceous 
cases  of  Infusoriae,  so  minute  as  only  to  be  detected  by 
a  powerful  microscope,  and  yet  exhibiting  distinct  spe- 


K.     Chap.  ti. 


Chap.  VI.      HOSPITALITY   OP   THE   PLANTERS. 


107 


111  does  not 
s  consideia- 
id  southern 
niles.  The 
)ws  entirely 
1  large  estu- 
facility  with 
ffs  were  un- 
ste  which  is 

Llantic  plain, 
jaled  by  the 
^iefly  of  Mi- 
y  to  the  Cape 
ware,  Mary- 
3a  about  400 
ig  in  breadth 
some  patches 
la  and  Geor- 
dep(»its  pre- 

ary  strata  in 
•re  I  saw  in 
characteristic 
ly  and  sand, 
e  bed  of  yel- 
e  to  twenty- 
3y  a  band  of 
J  hy  INjfessor 
'  the  siliceous 
e  detected  by 
distinct  spe- 


cific cliaractcrs,  enabling  us  to  refer  them  to  the  Mio- 
cene period. 

Going  down  the  James  river  about  twenty  miles  be- 
low Richmond,  I  found,  at  a  place  called  City  Point,  on 
the  right  bank,  a  clifT  thirty  feet  high,  in  which  yellow 
and  white  sands  appear,  with  shells  very  analogous  to 
those  of  the  Suflblk  crag,  and  referable  to  the  same 
age ;  resting  on  Eocene  marl  and  green  earth.  Several 
miles  lower,  at  Evergreen,  I  collected  abundance  of 
shells  in  the  upper  or  Miocene  formation,  with  great 
numbers  of  an  Asiarte,  resembling  one  of  the  com- 
monest kinds  of  the  Suffolk  crag,  and  accompanied  by 
the  teeth  of  sharks,  and  bones  of  cetacea.  Landing 
then  at  Coggin's  Point,  several  miles  farther  eastward 
on  the  Virginian  shore,  I  was  conducted  by  Mr.  Ruffin, 
son  of  the  editor  of  the  Farmer's  Register,  to  a  locality 
where  shcU-marl  is  procured  and  used  for  improving 
light  soils,  just  as  in  Suffolk  and  on  the  Loire,  strata 
of  the  same  age,  called  crag"  and  /alun,  have  for  cen- 
turies afforded  a  fertilizing  mixture. 

Here,  and  at  Evergreen  before  mentioned,  large  flat- 
tened masses  several  feet  wide,  of  a  lamelliforni  coral 
resembling  an  Astroia,  were  lying  on  the  beach,  washed 
out  of  the  Miocene  marls.  The  species  has  been  called 
by  Mr.  Lonsdale  Column  aria  sexradiafa,  and  differs 
from  the  genus  Astraea,  as  defined  by  Ehrenberg,  in 
the  stars  not  being  subdivided. 

All  the  planters  in  this  part  of  Virginia,  to  whose 
houses  I  went  without  letters  of  introduction,  received 
me  most  politely  and  hospitably.  To  be  an  English- 
man engaged  in  scientific  pursuits  was  a  sufficient  pass- 
port, and  their  servants,  horses,  and  carriages,  were  most 
liberally  placed  at  my  disposal. 


108 


WILLIAMSBURG. 


Chap.  vi. 


I  then  crossed  to  the  north  side  of  the  James  river, 
being  rowed  out  at  sunrise  far  from  the  shore  to  wait 
for  a  steamer.  The  liour  of  her  arrival  being  some- 
what uncertain,  we  remained  for  some  time  in  the  cold, 
muffled  up  in  our  cloaks,  in  a  small  boat  moored  to  a 
single  wooden  pile  driven  into  a  shoal,  with  three  ne- 
groes for  our  companions.  The  situation  was  desolate 
in  the  extreme,  both  the  banks  of  the  broad  estuary 
appearing  low  and  distant,  and  as  wild  and  uninhabited 
as  when  first  discovered  in  1607,  by  Captain  Smith,  be- 
fore he  was  taken  prisoner,  and  his  life  saved  by  the 
Indian  maiden  Pocahontas.  At  length  we  gladly  hailed 
the  large  steamer  as  she  came  down  rapidly  towards 
us,  and  my  luggage  was  immediately  taken  charge  of 
by  two  of  the  sable  crew,  who  called  themselves  Lord 
Wellington  and  Julius  Ciesar. 

We  disembarked  in  a  few  hours  near  the  old  desert- 
ed village  of  Jamestown,  at  the  Grove  Landing,  seven 
miles  south  of  Williamsburg.  Here  I  found  the  beach 
strewed  over  with  innumerable  fossil  shells,  washed  out 
of  the  sandy  Miocene  marls  of  a  cliff  forty  feet  high. 
Some  large  varieties  of  the  genus  Pecten  were  most 
abundant,  closely  packed  together  in  a  dense  bed, 
above  which  was  another  layer  composed  almost  wholly 
of  the  shells  of  a  Chama  {C.  congregata),  both  valves 
being  united  in  each  individual.  From  the  same  cliff 
I  also  procured  shells  of  the  genera  Contis,  Oliva, 
Marginella,  Fusus,  Pyrula,  Murex,  Natica,  and 
others. 

We  then  visited  Williamsburg,  where  there  is  a  Uni- 
versity founded  by  William  and  Mary,  and  therefc  3 
very  ancient  for  this  country.  In  the  neighbourhooG  J 
procured  a  rich  harvest  of  fossil  shells,  collecting  in  one 


Chap.  vi. 


Chap.  ti. 


MIOCENE   FOSSILS. 


109 


imes  river, 
ove  to  wait 
;ing  some- 
Ill  the  cold, 
[oored  to  a 
I  three  ne- 
ras  desolate 
oad  estuary 
Lininhabited 
1  Smith,  be- 
Lved  by  the 
rladly  hailed 
idly  towards 
in  charge  of 
iselves  Lord 

le  old  desert- 
nding,  seven 
nd  the  beach 
3,  washed  out 
ty  feet  high. 
n  were  most 
L  dense  bed, 
ilmost  wholly 
),  both  valves 
he  same  cUff 
mtis,  Olivay 
Natica,  and 

liere  is  a  Uni- 
md  theref   ^ 

IghbourhooG  i 
lecting  in  one 


morning  with  my  own  hands  no  less  than  seventy  dis- 
tinct species,  besides  several  corals,  in  a  pit  at  Burwell's 
Mill.  Upon  the  whole,  I  procured  147  species  of  shells, 
exclusive  of  Balani  and  corals,  from  this  formation  in 
the  United  States,  and  chieily  during  the  present  expe- 
dition and  near  the  banks  of  the  .Tames  river. 

That  they  belong  to  the  same  age  as  the  Miocene 
deposits  of  Europe  may  be  inferred : — first,  from  their 
position,  as  they  overlie  the  Eocene  marls  containing 
shells,  resembling  those  of  the  London  and  Paris  ba- 
sins : — secondly,  from  the  close  affinity  of  many  of  the 
most  abundant  species  to  fossils  of  the  crag  of  Suffolk 
and  the  French  faluns : — thirdly,  from  the  proportion 
of  the  fossil  shells,  identical  in  species  with  mollusca, 
now  inhabiting  the  American  coast,  the  proportion  be- 
ing about  one  sixth  of  the  whole,  or  about  seventeen 
per  cent.,  in  those  compared  by  me,  for  I  have  been  able 
to  identify  23  out  of  147  with  living  shells.     This  re- 
lation of  the  fossil  and  recent  fauna  had  already  led 
Mr.  Conrad  and  the  Professors  Rogers  to  the  same  con- 
clusions, and  they  had  correctly  called  these  deposits 
Miocene.     Fourthly,  the  corals,  of  which  I  obtained 
thirteen  species,  agree  all  generically  with  those  of  the 
Miocene  beds  of  Europe,  and  some  specifically,  as  a 
lunulite,  the  same  as  one  from  the  Suffolk  crag,  and 
Anthophyllum  breve,  common  in  the  faluns  of  Tou- 
raine.    Fifthly,  the  cetacea  also  agree  generically,  and 
the  fish  in  many  cases  specifically,  with  European  Mi- 
ocene fossils,  and  no  remains  of  reptiles  have  been  found 
on  either  side  of  the  Atlantic  in  this  formation. 

When  we  consider  how  remarkably  the  species  of 
the  Suffolk  crag  differ  from  the  shells  of  the  contem- 
poraneous faluns  of  the  Loire,  the  geologist  will  not  be 

10 


ni 


n 


Ik 

I 


^ori 


110 


MIOCENE   FOSSILS. 


Chap.  ti. 


surprised  to  learn  tliat  I  have  only  met  with  nine 
American  Miocene  shells,  agreeing  with  fossils  of  the 
same  period  in  Europe.  It  is  also  worthy  of  notice 
that  the  shells  identified  with  recent  species  agree  with 
testacea,  now  living  on  the  western  side  of  the  Atlan- 
tic, some  of  which,  as  some  kinds  of  Fulgur,  a  sub- 
genus of  Pyrula,  and  Gnaihodon,  an  estuary  shell, 
are  forms  peculiar  to  America.  In  Hke  manner,  the 
fossil  shells  found  in  the  Miocene  strata  of  Europe, 
which  agree  with  recent  kinds,  belong  to  species  in- 
habiting the  British  seas,  the  Mediterranean,  or  the 
African  coast  of  the  Atlantic.  Hence  it  follows  that  at 
the  remote  period  called  Miocene,  the  seas  were  not 
only  divided  as  now  into  distinct  geographical  provinces, 
but  already  that  peculiar  distribution  of  the  living  mol- 
lusca  which  now  exists  had  begun  to  prevail.  This 
conclusion  is  remarkable  when  we  recollect  that  at  the 
geological  era  alluded  to,  the  fauna  was  so  distinct  from 
the  present,  that  four  fifths  of  the  species  now  living 
had  not  yet  come  into  existence. 

In  regard  to  the  climate  of  the  Miocene  period  it  is 
not  uninteresting  to  observe  that  the  fossil  shells  of 
Maryland  and  Virginia  resemble  those  of  Touraine  and 
Bourdeaux  more  nearly  than  the  fossils  of  Suffolk. 
This  might  have  been  expected  from  the  nearer  cor- 
respondence in  latitude  ;  and  it  is  the  presence  of  such 
genera  as  Conus,  Oliva,  Marginella,  and  Crassatella 
(represented  by  large  species),  forms  belonging  to 
warmer  seas,  which  assimilate  the  American  and 
French  deposits,  and  contrast  both  of  them  with  the 
English,  where  no  representatives  of  these  genera  are 
met  with.  Nevertheless,  it  is  singulajr  thM  there  i^hould 
be  so  much  itescmldanoe  between  the  MkA)ene  shells  of 


CiTAP.  VI. 


MIOCENE   FOSSILS. 


Ill 


1 


Ihe  Loire  and  Gironde  and  those  of  the  James  river 
and  other  estuaries  in  the  United  States  which  lie  ten 
degrees  of  latitude  farther  south  than  the  French  fa- 
luns,  the  latter  being  in  the  47th,  while  the  American 
strata  of  the  same  age  are  in  the  37th  of  north  lati- 
tude. This  circumstance  may  probably  be  accounted 
for  by  curves  in  the  isothermal  lines  similar  in  their 
prolongation  east  and  west,  to  those  now  existing  aa 
pointed  out  by  Humboldt,  in  his  essay  on  Climate. 


112 


PINE    BARRENS    OF   VIRGINIA. 


Chap.  ▼». 


CHAPTER  VII. 


Pine  Darrens  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina. — Railway  Train 
$toppfd  by  Snow  and  Ice. — The  Great  Dismal  Swamp. — Soil 
formed  entirely  of  Vegetable  Matter, — Rises  higher  than  the  con- 
tiguous firm  Land. — Buried  Timber. — Lake  in  the  Middle, — The 
Origin  of  Coal  illustrated  by  the  Great  Dismal. — Objections  to 
the  Theory  of  an  ancient  Atmosphere  highly  charged  with  Car- 
bonic Acid. 

Dec.  23.  1841. — From  Williamsburg  we  went  to 
Norfolk  in  Virginia,  passing  down  the  James  river  in  a 
steamer,  and  from  Norfolk  by  railway  to  Weldon  in 
North  Carolina,  passing  for  eighty  miles  through  a  low 
level  country,  covered  with  lir  trees,  and  called  the  Pine 
Barrens.  On  our  way  we  were  overtaken  by  rain, 
which  turned  to  sleet,  and  in  the  evening  formed  a 
coating  of  ice  on  the  rails,  so  that  the  wheels  of  the  en- 
gine could  take  no  hold.  There  was  a  good  stove  and 
plenty  of  fuel  in  the  car,  but  no  food.  After  a  short 
pause,  the  engineer  backed  the  locomotive  for  half  a 
mile  over  that  part  of  the  rail  from  which  the  snow  and 
ice  had  just  been  brushed  and  scraped  away  by  the  pas- 
sage of  the  train ;  then,  returning  rapidly,  he  gained 
sufficient  momentum  to  carry  us  on  two  or  three  miles 
farther,  and,  by  several  repetitions  of  this  manoeuvre,  he 
brought  us,  about  nightfall,  to  a  small  watering  station, 
where  there  was  no  inn,  but  a  two-storied  cottage  not 
far  off. 

Here  we  were  made  welcome,  and  as  we  had  previ- 
ously dropped  by  the  way  all  our  passengers  except  two, 
were  furnished  with  a  small  room  to  ourselves,  and  a 


Chap.  vit. 


THIi:    PINK    BARRENS. 


113 


;>:<! 


clean  comfortable  ImjcI.  Wc  soon  made  a  bla/ing  wwhI- 
firc,  and  i\vi'u;i\  the  cold,  allliou<^h  wc  couUl  see  plainly 
the  white  snow  on  the  ground  through  (iponing^s  in  the 
unplastered  laths  of  which  the  wall  of  the  house  was 
made.  Before  morning  all  the  snow  was  melted,  and 
we  again  proceeded  on  our  way  through  the  Pine 
Barrens. 

Our  car,  according  to  the  usual  construction  in  this 
country,  was  in  the  shape  of  a  long  omnibus,  with  the 
seats  transverse,  and  a  passage  down  the  middle,  where, 
to  the  great  relief  of  the  traveller,  he  can  stand  upright 
with  his  hat  on,  and  walk  about,  warming  himself 
when  he  pleases  at  the  stove,  which  is  in  the  centre  of 
the  car.  There  is  often  a  private  room  fitted  up  for 
the  ladies,  into  which  no  gentleman  can  intrude,  and 
where  they  are  sometimes  supplied  with  rocking-chairs, 
so  essential  to  the  comfort  of  the  Americans,  whether 
at  sea  or  on  land,  in  a  fasl.ionable  drawing-room  or  in 
the  cabin  of  a  ship.  It  is  singular  enough  that  this 
luxury,  after  being  popular  for  ages  all  over  Lancashire, 
required  transplantation  to  the  New  World  before  it 
could  be  improved  and  become  fashionable,  so  as  to  be 
reimported  into  its  native  land. 

The  Pine  Barrens,  on  which  the  long-leaied  or  pitch 
pines  flourish,  have  for  the  most  part  a  siliceous  soil, 
and  form  a  broad  belt  many  hundred  miles  in  length, 
running  parallel  to  the  coast,  in  the  region  called  the 
Atlantic  Plain,  before  alluded  to.  The  sands,  as  wo 
follo\#this  region  from  New  Jersey  to  Georgia,  are  de- 
rived from  strata  of  more  than  one  tertiary  period,  and 
there  are  interstratified  beds  of  clay,  which,  whenever 
they  come  to  the  surface  in  valleys,  cause  swamps, 
where  peculiar  kinds  of  evergreen  oaks,  the  cypress  or 

10* 


i  i ' 


'  I! 


114 


GREAT    DISMAL    SWAMP. 


Chap.  vn. 


cedar,  tall  canes,  and  other  plants  abound.  Many 
climbers,  called  here  wild  vines,  encircle  the  trunks  of 
the  trees,  and  on  the  banks  of  the  Roanoke,  near  Wel- 
don,  I  saw  numerous  missletoes  witli  their  white  berries. 
The  Pine  Barrens  retain  much  of  their  verdure  in  win- 
ter, and  were  interesting  to  me  from  the  uniformity 
and  monotony  of  their  general  aspect,  for  they  consti- 
tute, from  their  vast  extent,  one  of  the  marked  features 
in  the  geography  of  the  globe,  lil:e  the  Pampas  of 
South  America. 

There  are  many  swamps  or  morasses  in  this  low  flat 
region,  and  one  of  the  largest  of  these  occurs  between 
the  towns  of  Norfolk  and  Weldon.  '  We  traversed  sev- 
eral miles  of  its  northern  extrcmit}'^  on  the  railway, 
which  is  supported  on  piles.  It  bears  the  appropriate 
and  very  expres='"c  name  of  the  "  Great  Dismal,"  and 
is  no  less  than  forty  miles  in  length  A-om  north  to  south, 
and  twenty-five  miles  in  its  greatest  width  from  east  to 
west,  the  northern  half  being  situated  in  Virginia,  the 
southern  in  North  Carolina.  I  observed  that  the  water 
was  obviously  in  motion  in  several  places,  and  the  mo- 
rass has  somewhat  the  appearance  of  a  broad  inundated 
river-plain,  covered  with  all  kinds  of  aquatic  trees  and 
shrubs,  the  soil  being  as  black  as  in  a  peat-bog.  The 
accumulation  of  vegetable  matter  going  on  here  in  a 
hot  climate,  over  so  vast  an  area,  is  a  subject  of  such 
high  geological  interest,  that  I  shall  relate  what  I  learnt 
of  this  singular  morass.  The  best  account  yet  published 
of  it  is  given  by  Mr.  Edmund  Rufiin,  the  able  editor 
of  the  Farmer's  Register  (see  vol  iv.,  No.  9.  January 
7.  1837). 

It  is  one  enormous  quagmire,  soft  and  muddy,  except 
where  the  surface  is  rendered  partially  firm  by  a  cover- 


f. 


Chap.  vii. 


GREAT    DISMAL    SWAMP. 


115 


ing  of  vegetables  and  their  matted  roots  ;  yet,  strange 
to  say,  instead  of  being  lower  than  the  level  of  the  sur- 
rounding country,  it  is  actually  higher  than  nearly  all 
the  firm  and  dry  land  which  encompasses  it,  and,  to 
make  the  anomaly  complete,  in  spite  of  its  semi-fluid 
character,  it  is  higher  in  the  interior  than  towards  its 
margin. 

The  only  exceptions  to  both  these  statements  is  found 
on  the  western  side,  where,  for  the  distance  of  about 
twelve  or  fifteen  miles,  the  streams  flow  from  slightly 
elevated  but  higher  land,  and  supply  all  its  abundant 
and  overflowing  water.  Towards  the  north,  the  cast, 
and  the  south,  the  waters  flow  from  the  swamp  to  dif- 
ferent rivers,  which  give  abundant  evidence,  by  the 
rate  of  their  descent,  that  the  Great  Dismal  is  higher 
than  the  surrounding  firm  ground.  This  fact  is  also 
confirmed  by  the  measurements  made  in  levelling  for 
the  railway  from  Portsmouth  to  Suffolk,  and  for  two 
canals  cut  through  diflerent  parts  of  the  morass,  for  the 
sake  of  obtaining  timber.  The  railway  itself,  when 
traversing  the  Great  Dismal,  is  literally  higher  than 
when  on  the  land  some  miles  distant  on  either  side,  and 
is  six  to  seven  feet  higher  than  where  it  passes  over  dry 
ground,  near  to  Suffolk  and  Portsmouth.  Upon  the 
whole,  the  centre  of  the  morass  seems  to  lie  more  than 
twelve  feet  above  the  flat  coimtry  round  it.  If  the 
streams  which  now  flow  in  from  the  west,  had  for  ages 
been  bringing  down  black  fluid  mire,  instead  of  water, 
over  the  firm  subsoil,  we  might  suppose  the  ground  so 
inundated  to  have  acquired  its  present  configuration. 
Some  small  ridges,  however,  of  land  must  have  existed 
in  the  original  plain  or  basin,  for  these  now  rise  like 
lo^  islands  in  various  places  above  the  general  surface. 


V'< 


I' 

I) 


f^r 


V<1 


^^    ) 


116    SOIL  FORMED  OF  VEGETABLE  MATTER.   Chap.  vii. 

But  the  streams  to  the  westward  do  not  bring  down  li- 
quid mire,  and  are  not  cliarged  with  any  sediment. 
The  soil  of  tlie  swamp  is  formed  of  vegetable  matter, 
usually  without  any  admixture  of  earthy  particles.  We 
have  here,  in  fact,  a  deposit  of  peat  from  ten  to  fifteen 
feet  in  thickness,  in  a  latitude  where,  owing  to  the  heat 
of  the  sun,  and  length  of  the  summer,  no  peat  mosses 
like  those  of  Europe  would  be  looked  for  under  ordi- 
nary circumstances. 

In  countries  like  Scotland  and  Ireland,  where  the 
climate  is  damp,  and  the  summer  short  and  cool,  the 
natural  vegetation  of  one  year  does  not  rot  away  du- 
ring the  next  in  moist  situations.  If  water  flows  into 
such  land,  it  is  absorbed,  and  promotes  the  vigorous 
growth  of  mosses  and  other  aquatic  plants,  and  when 
they  die,  the  same  water  arrests  their  putrefaction. 
But  as  a  general  ride,  no  such  accumulation  of  peat 
can  take  place  in  a  country  like  that  of  Virginia, 
where  the  summer's  heat  causes  annually  as  large  a 
quantity  of  dead  plants  to  decay  as  is  equal  in  amount 
to  the  vegetable  matter  produced  in  one  year. 

It  has  been  already  stated  that  there  are  many  trees 
and  shrubs  in  the  region  of  the  Pine  Barrens  (and  the 
same  may  be  said  of  the  United  States  generally), 
which,  like  our  willows,  flourish  luxuriantly  in  water. 
The  juniper  trees,  or  white  cedar  {Cupressus  thy- 
oides),  stand  firmly  in  the  softest  part  of  the  quag- 
mire, supported  by  their  long  tap-roots,  and  afllbrd, 
with  many  other  evergreens,  a  dark  shade,  under 
which  a  multitude  of  ferns,  reeds,  and  shrubs,  from 
nine  to  eighteen  feet  high,  and  a  thick  carpet  of  moss- 
es, four  or  five  inches  high,  spring  up  and  are  pro- 
tected from  the  rays  of  the  sun.    When  these  are  most 


1 


ER.  Chap.  vii. 


Chap.  vii. 


GREAT    DISMAL    SWAMP. 


117 


powerful,  the  large  cedar  {Cupressus  disticha)  and 
many  other  deciduous  trees  are  in  full  leaf  The  black 
soil  formed  beneath  this  shade,  to  which  the  mosses 
and  the  leaves  make  annual  additions,  does  not  per- 
fectly resemble  the  peat  of  Europe,  most  of  the  plants 
being  so  decayed  as  to  leave  little  more  than  soft  black 
V.  id,  without  any  traces  of  organization.  This  loose 
soil  is  called  sponge  by  the  labourers  ;  and  it  has  been 
ascertained  that,  when  exposed  to  the  sun,  and  thrown 
out  on  the  bank  of  a  canal,  Avherc  clearings  have  been 
made,  it  rots  entirely  away.  Hence  it  is  evident  that 
it  owes  its  preservation  in  the  swamp  to  moisture  and 
the  shade  of  the  dense  foliage.  The  evaporation  con- 
tinually going  on  in  the  wet  spongy  soil  during  summer 
cools  the  air,  and  generates  a  temperatuie  resembling 
that  of  a  more  northern  climate,  or  a  region  more  ele- 
vated above  the  level  of  .  le  sea. 

Numerous  trunks  of  large  and  tall  trees  lie  liuried  in 
the  black  mire  of  the  morass.  In  so  loose  a  soil  they 
are  easily  overthrown  by  winds,  and  nearly  as  many 
have  been  found  lying  beneath  the  surface  of  the  peaty 
soil,  as  standing  erect  upon  it.  When  thrown  down, 
they  are  soon  covered  by  water,  and  keeping  wet  they 
never  decompose,  except  the  sap  wood,  which  is  less 
than  an  inch  thick.  Much  of  the  timber  is  obtained 
by  sounding  a  foot  or  two  below  the  surface,  and  it  ia 
sawn  into  planks  while  half  under  water. 

The  Great  Dismal  has  been  described  as  being  high- 
est towards  its  centre.  Here,  however,  there  is  an  ex- 
tensive lake  of  an  oval  form,  seven  miles  long,  and 
more  than  five  wide,  the  depth,  where  greatest,  fifteen 
feet ;  and  its  bottom,  consisting  of  mud  like  the  swamp, 
but  sometimes  with  a  pure  white  sand,  a  foot  deep,  cov- 


«k 


»l 


i 


(i 


I       '  ll 


ii 


1 


Ml 


l|- 


118 


ORIGIN    OF   COAL. 


Chap.  vii. 


ering  the  mud.  The  water  is  transparent,  though 
tinged  of  a  pale  brown-colour,  hke  tliat  of  our  peat- 
mosses, and  contains  abundance  of  fish.  This  sheet 
of  water  is  usually  even  with  its  banks,  on  which  a 
thick  and  tall  forest  grows.  There  is  ho  beach,  for  the 
bank  sinks  perpendicularly,  so  that  if  the  waters  are 
lowered  smeral  feet  it  makes  no  alteration  in  the 
breadth  of  the  lake. 

Much  timber  has  been  cut  down  and  carried  out 
from  the  swamp  by  means  of  canals,  which  are  per- 
fectly straight  for  long  distances,  with  the  trees  on  each 
side  arching  over  and  almost  joining  their  branches 
across,  so  that  they  throw  a  dark  shade  on  the  water, 
which  of  itself  looks  black,  being  coloured  as  before 
mentioned.  When  the  boats  emerge  from  the  gloom 
of  these  avenues  into  the  lake,  the  scene  is  said  to  be 
"  as  beautiful  as  fairy  land." 

The  bears  inhal)iting  the  swamp  climb  trees  in 
search  of  acorns  and  gum  berries,  breaking  off  large 
boughs  of  the  oaks  in  order  to  draw  the  acorns  near 
to  them.  These  same  bears  are  said  to  kill  hogs  and 
even  cows.  There  are  also  wild  cats,  and  occasionally 
a  solitary  wolf,  in  the  morass. 

That  the  ancient  seams  of  coal  were  produced  for 
the  most  part  by  terrestrial  plants  of  all  sizes,  not  drift- 
ed, but  growing  on  the  spot,  is  a  theory  more  and  more 
generally  adopted  in  modern  times,  and  the  growth  of 
%v  liat  is  called  sponge  in  such  a  swamp,  and  in  such  a 
chmate  as  the  Great  Dismal,  already  covering  so  many 
square  miles  of  a  low  level  region  bordering  the 
sea,  and  capable  of  spreading  itself  indefinitely  over 
the  adjacent  country,  helps  us  greatly  to  conceive  the 
manner  in  which  the  coal  of  the  ancient  Carboniferous 


Chap.  vii. 

rent,  though 
of  our  peat- 
This  sheet 
,  on  which  a 
beach,  for  the 
le  waters  are 
ration  in  the 

id  carried  out 
hich  are  per- 
»  trees  on  each 
Lheir  branches 
on  the  water, 
ured  as  before 
from  the  gloom 
(le  is  said  to  be 

chmb  trees  in 
aking  off  large 
he  acorns  near 
,o  kill  hogs  and 
ind  occasionally 

re  produced  for 
I  sizes,  not  drift- 
more  and  more 
1  the  growth  of 
),  and  in  such  a 
overing  so  many 
bordering   the 
indefinitely  over 
to  conceive  the 
nt  Carboniferous 


Chap.  vii. 


ORIGIN    OP   COAL. 


119 


rocks  may  have  been  formed.  Th^'  heat,  perhaps,  may 
not  have  been  excessive  when  the  coal-measures  oi'vA- 
nated,  but  the  entire  absence  of  frost,  with  a  warm  and 
damp  atmosphere,  may  have  enabled  tropical  forms  to 
flourish  in  latitudes  far  distant  from  tlie  line.  Huge 
swamps  in  a  rainy  climate,  standing  above  the  level  of 
the  surrounding  firm  land,  and  supporting  a  dense 
forest,  may  have  s})rea(l  far  and  wide,  invading  the 
plains,  like  some  European  peat-mosses  when  they 
burst ;  and  the  frequent  submergence  of  these  masses 
of  vegetable  matter  beneath  seas  or  estuaries,  as  often 
as  the  land  sunk  down  during  subterranean  move- 
ments, may  have  given  rise  to  the  deposition  of  strata 
of  mud,  sand,  or  limestone,  immediately  upon  the 
vejfetable  matter.  The  conversion  of  successive  sur- 
faces  into  dry  land,  where  other  swamps  supporting 
trees  may  have  formed,  miglit  give  origin  to  a  continu- 
ed series  of  coal-measures  of  great  thickness.  In  some 
kinds  of  coal,  the  vegetable  texture  is  apparent  through- 
out under  the  microscope  ;  in  others,  it  has  only  par- 
tially disappeared ;  but  even  in  this  coal  the  flattened 
trunks  of  trees  of  the  genera  Lepidodendron,  Slgil- 
laria,  and  others,  converted  into  pure  coal,  are  occa- 
sionally met  with,  and  erect  fossil  trees  are  observed  in 
the  overlying  strata,  terminating  downwards  in  seams 
of  coal.  The  chemical  processes  by  which  vegetable 
matter  buried  in  the  earth  is  gradually  turned  into 
coal  and  anthracite  has  been  already  explained  (see 
above,  p.  72.). 

Before  concluding  the  remarks  which  are  naturally 
suggested  by  a  visit  to  the  Great  Dismal,  I  shall  say  a 
few  words  on  a  popular  doctrine,  favoured  by  some  ge- 
ologists, respecting  an  atmosphere  highly  charged  with 


120 


THEORY    OF   ATMOSPHERE 


Chap.  vti. 


)   ■ 


carbonic  acid,  in  which  the  coal  plants  are  supposed  to 
have  flourished.  Some  imagine  the  air  to  have  been 
so  full  of  choke-damp  during  the  ancient  era  alluded  to, 
that  it  was  unfitted  for  the  respiration  of  warm-blooded 
quadrupeds  and  birds,  or  even  reptiles,  which  require  a 
more  rapid  oxygenation  of  their  blood  than  creatures 
lower  in  the  scale  of  organization,  such  as  have  alone 
been  met  with  hitherto  in  the  Carboniferous  and  older 
strata.  It  is  assumed  that  an  excess  of  oxygen  was  set 
free  when  the  plants  which  elaborated  the  coal  sub- 
tracted many  hundred  million  tons  of  carbon  from 
the  carbonic  acid  gas  which  previously  loaded  the  air. 
All  this  carbon  was  then  permanently  locked  up  in 
solid  seams  of  coal,  and  the  chemical  composition  of 
the  earth's  atmosphere  essentially  altered. 

But  they  who  reason  thus  are  bound  to  inform  us 
what  may  have  been  the  duration  of  the  period  in  the 
course  of  which  so  much  carbon  was  secreted  by  the 
powers  of  vegetable  life,  and,  secondly,  what  accession 
of  fresh  carbonic  acid  did  the  air  receive  in  the  same. 
We  know  that  in  the  present  state  of  the  globe,  the 
air  is  continually  supplied  with  carbonic  acid  from 
several  sources,  of  which  the  three  principal  are,  first, 
the  daily  putrefactien  of  dead  animal  and  vegetable 
substances  ;  secondly,  the  disintegration  of  rocks  char- 
ged v/ith  carbonic  acid  and  organic  matter ;  and,  thirdly,- 
the  copious  evolution  of  this  gas  from  mineral  springs 
and  the  earth,  especially  in  volcanic  countries.  By 
that  law  which  causes  two  gases  of  different  specific 
gravity,  when  brought  into  contact,  to  become  uni- 
formly diffused  and  mutually  absorbed  through  the 
whole  space  which  they  occupy,  the  heavy  carbonic 
acid  finds  its  way  upwards  through  all  parts  of  the  at- 


Chap.  vii.      CHARGED   WITH    CARBONIC    ACID. 


121 


e  supposed  to 
to  have  been 
era  alluded  to, 
warm-blooded 
rhich  require  a 
than  creatures 
as  have  alone 
rous  and  older 
oxygen  wa?  set 
d  the  coal  sub- 
of  carbon  from 
y  loaded  the  air. 
ly  locked  up  in 
1  composition  of 

led. 

md  to  inform  us 
the  period  in  the 
s  secreted  by  the 
y,  what  accession 
eive  in  the  same, 
of  the  globe,  the 
rbonic  acid  from 
)rincipal  are,  first, 
aal  and  vegetable 
tion  of  rocks  char- 
itter  -,  and,  thirdly; 
„i  mineral  springs 
ic  countries.      By 
)f  different  specific 
;t,  to  become  um- 
)rbed  through  the 
he  heavy  carbonic 
all  parts  of  the  at- 


mosphere, and  the  solid  materials  of  large  forests  arc 
given  out  from  the  earth  iu  an  invisible  form,  or  in 
bubbles  rising  through  the  water  of  springs.  Peat- 
mosses of  no  slight  depth,  and  covering  thousands  of 
square  miles,  arc  thus  fed  with  their  mineral  constitu- 
ents without  materially  deranging  the  constituents  of 
the  atmosphere  breathed  by  man.  Tliousands  of  trees 
grow  up,  lloat  down  to  the  delta  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
other  rivers,  and  are  buried,  and  yet  the  air,  at  the  end 
of  many  centuries,  may  be  as  much  impregnated  with 
carbonic  acid  as  before. 

Coral  reefs  are  year  after  year  growing  in  the  ocean 
— springs  and  rivers  feed  the  same  ocean  Avith  carbonic 
acid  and  lime ;  but  we  have  no  reason  to  infer  that 
when  mountain  masses  of  calcareous  rock  liave  thus 
been  gradually  formed  in  the  sea,  any  essential  change 
in  the  chemical  composition  of  its  waters  has  been 
brought  about.  We  have  no  accurate  data  as  yet  for 
measuring  whether  in  our  own  time,  or  at  any  remote 
geological  era,  the  relaliv^e  supply  and  consumption  of 
carbon  in  the  air  or  the  ocean  causes  the  amount  of 
those  elements  to  vary  greatly ;  but  the  variation,  if 
admitted,  would  not  have  caused  an  excess,  but  rather 
a  deficit  of  carbon  in  the  periods  most  productive  of  coal 
or  poat,  as  compared  to  any  subsequent  or  antecedent 
epjchs.  In  fact,  a  climate  favouring  the  rank  and  lux- 
urious growth  of  plants,  and  at  the  same  time  check- 
ing their  decay,  and  giving  rise  to  peat  or  accumula- 
tions of  vegetable  matter,  might,  for  the  time,  diminish 
the  average  amount  of  carbonic  acid  in  the  atmosphere 
— a  state  of  things  precisely  the  reverse  of  that  assu- 
med by  those  to  whose  views  I  am  now  objecting. 

11 


II 


;  I 


fr 


II 


-I1'LL.>»1   M.,Mm 


122 


TOUR    TO   CHARLESTON. 


Chap,  win 


I    ili 


. 


:  i 


r    i\ 


^ 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

Tour  to  Charleston,  South  Carolina. — Facilities  of  Loeomolion.—- 
Augusta. — Voyage  down  the  Sava7inah  River. — Shell  Bluff.— 
Slave-labour. — Fever  and  Ague. — Millhaven. — Pine  Forests  of 
Georgia. — Alligatura  and  Land -Tortoises. — Warmth  of  Climate 
in  January. — Tertiary  Strata  on  the  Savannah. — Fossil  Remains 
of  Mastodon  and  Mylodon  near  Saeannah. — Passports  required 
of  Slaves. — Cheerfulness  rj  the  Negroes. 

Dec.  28. — Charleston,  South  Carolina.  We  ar- 
rived here  after  a  journey  of  160  miles  through  the 
pine  forests  of  North  Carolina,  between  Weldon  and 
Wilmington,  and  a  voyage  of  about  17  hours,  in  a 
steam  ship,  chiefly  in  the  night  between  Wilmington 
and  this  place.  Here  we  find  ourselves  in  a  genial  cli- 
mate, where  the  snow  is  rarely  seen,  and  never  lies 
above  an  hour  or  two  upon  the  ground.  The  rose,  the 
narcissus,  and  other  flowers,  are  still  lingering  in  the 
gardens,  the  woods  still  verdant  with  the  magnolia,  live 
oak,  and  long-leaved  pine,  while  the  dwarf  fan  palm 
or  palmetto,  frequent  among  the  underwood,  marks  a 
more  southern  region.  In  less  than  four  Avecks  since 
we  left  Boston,  we  have  passed  from  the  43d  to  the  33d 
degree  of  latitude,  carried  often  by  the  power  of  steam 
for  several  hundred  miles  together  through  thinly  peo- 
pled wildernesses,  yet  sleeping  every  night  at  good  inns, 
and  contrasting  the  facilities  of  locomotion  in  this  new 
country  Avith  the  difficulties  wc  had  contended  with 
the  year  before  when  travelling  in  Europe,  through 
populous  parts  of  Touraine,  Brittany,  and  other  prov- 
inces of  France. 


I   I 


Chap.  Tin 


Chap.  viii. 


AUGUSTA. 


123 


if  Jjoeomoiion.~^ 
-Shell  Bluff.— 
fine  Forests  of 
rmth  of  Climate 
-Fossil  Remains 
issports  required 

Una.  We  ar- 
3  through  the 
1  Weldon  and 
L7  hours,  in  a 
in  WUmington 
in  a  genial  cU- 
and  never  lies 

The  rose,  the 
ingering  in  the 
e  magnolia,  hve 
Iwarf  fan  palm 
snvood,  marks  a 
our  weeks  since 
:  43d  to  the  33d 

power  of  steam 
augh  thinly  pco- 
Tht  at  good  inns, 
jtion  in  this  new 

contended  with 
Europe,  through 

and  other  prov- 


,11 


At  Charleston  I  made  acquaintance  with  several 
persons  zealously  engaged  in  the  study  of  natural  his- 
tory, and  then  went  by  an  excellent  railway  136  miles 
through  the  endless  pine  woods  to  Augusta,  in  Georgia. 
Tliis  journey,  which  would  formerly  have  taken  a 
week,  was  accomplished  between  sunrise  and  sunset ; 
and,  as  we  scarcely  saw  by  the  way  any  town  or  vil- 
lage, or  even  a  clearing,  nor  any  human  habitation  ex- 
cept the  station  houses,  the  spirit  of  enterprise  displayed 
in  such  public  works  filled  me  with  astonishment  which 
increased  the  farther  I  went  South.  Starting  from  the 
sea-side,  and  imagining  that  we  had  been  on  a  level  the 
whole  way,  we  were  surprised  to  find  in  the  evening, 
on  reaching  the  village  of  Aikin,  sixteen  miles  from 
Augusta,  that  we  were  on  a  height  several  hundred 
feet  above  tlie  sea,  and  that  we  had  to  descend  a  steep 
inclined  plane  to  the  val'ey  of  the  Savannah  river. 
The  strata  cut  through  here  in  making  the  railway 
consist  of  vermilion-coloured  earth  and  clay,  and  white 
quartzose  sand,  with  masses  of  pure  white  kaolin  in- 
termixed. These  strata  belong  to  the  older  or  Eocene 
tertiary  formation,  which  joins  the  clay-slate  and  gra- 
nitic region  a  few  miles  above  Augusta,  where  I  visited 
the  rapids  of  the  Savannah. 

I  had  been  warned  by  my  scientific  friends  in  the 
North,  that  the  hospitahty  of  the  planters  might  greatly 
interfere  with  my  schemes  of  geologizing  in  the  South- 
ern states.  In  the  letters,  therefore,  of  introduction  fur- 
nished to  me  at  Washington,  it  was  particularly  re- 
quested that  information  respecting  my  objects,  and  fa- 
cilities of  moving  speedily  from  place  to  place,  should 
be  given  me,  instead  of  dinners  and  society.  These 
injunctions  were  every  where  Idndly  and  politely  com- 


iilij 


124 


SHELL    BLUrP. 


CjiAf.  tin. 


plied  with.  It  was  my  intention,  for  tiie  sake  of  get- 
ling  a  correct  notion  of  the  low  country  helween  the 
granitic  region  and  the  Atlantic,  to  examine  the  clifTs 
bounding  the  Savannah  river  from  its  rapids  to  near  its 
mouth,  a  distance,  including  its  windings,  of  about  250 
miles.  After  passing  a  few  days  at  Augusta,  where, 
for  the  first  time,  I  saw  cotton  growing  in  the  fields,  I 
embarked  in  a  steam-boat  employed  in  the  cotton  trade, 
and  went  for  forty  miles  down  the  great  river,  which 
usually  flows  in  a  broad  alluvial  plain,  with  an  aver- 
age fall  of  about  one  foot  per  mile,  or  250  feet  between 
Augusta  and  the  sea.  Like  the  Mississippi  and  all 
large  rivers,  which,  in  the  flood  season,  are  densely 
charged  with  sediment,  the  Savannah  has  its  immedi- 
ate banks  higher  than  the  plain  intervening  between 
them  and  the  high  grounds  beyond,  which  usually, 
however  distant  from  the  river,  present  a  steep  cliff  or 
"  bluff""  towards  it.  The  low  flat  alluvial  plain,  over- 
flowed in  great  part  at  this  rainy  season,  is  covered  with 
aquatic  trees,  and  an  ornamental  growth  of  tall  canes, 
some  of  them  reaching  a  height  of  twenty  feet,  being 
from  one  to  two  inches  in  diameter,  and  with  their 
leaves  still  green.  The  lofty  cedar  {Cupressus  disti- 
cha),  now  leafless,  towers  above  them,  and  is  remarlca- 
ble  for  the  angular  bends  of  the  top  boughs,  and  the 
large  thick  roots  which  swell  out  near  the  base. 

I  landed  first  at  a  chflT  about  120  feet  high,  called 
Shell  Bluff*,  from  the  large  fossil  oysters  which  are  con- 
spicuous there.  About  forty  miles  below  Augusta,  at 
Demery's  Ferry,  the  place  where  we  disembarked,  the 
waters  were  so  high  that  we  were  carried  on  shore  by 
two  stout  negroes.  In  the  absence  of  the  proprietor  to 
whom  I  had  letters,  we  were  hospitably  received  by  his 


* 


.1f 


Chap.  virt. 

sake  of  get- 
between  tV»e 
inc  the  cUlTs 
(Is  to  ncav  its 
of  about  250 
^usta,  where, 
n  the  fields,  I 
c  cotton  trade, 
t,  river,  which 
with  an  aver- 
0  feet  between 
issippi  and  all 
n,  are  densely 
las  its  immedi- 
ening  between 
which  usually, 
a  steep  chff  or 
ivial  plain,  over- 
,  is  covered  wnth 
th  of  tall  canes, 
renty  feet,  being 
and  with  their 
htpressus  d'lsti- 
and  is  remarka- 
30Ughs,  and  the 
the  base, 
feet  high,  called 
rs  which  are  con- 
low  Augusta,  at 
disembarked,  the 
rried  on  shore  by 
f  the  proprietor  to 
,ly  received  by  his 


Cn\r.  vni. 


SLAVE    LABOUR. 


12b 


overseer,  who  came  down  to  the  river  bank,  with  two 
led  horses,  on  one  of  which  was  a  lady's  saddle,  llo 
conducted  us  through  a  beautiful  wooil,  where  the  ver- 
dure of  the  evergreen  oaks,  the  pines,  and  hollies,  and 
the  mildness  of  the  air,  made  it  ditiicult  for  us  to  be- 
lieve that  it  was  mid-winter,  and  that  we  had  been  the 
month  before  in  a  region  of  snow  storms  and  sledges. 
We  crossed  two  creeks,  and  after  riding  several  njilea 
reached  the  house,  and  were  shown  into  a  spacious 
room,  where  a  great  wood  fire  was  kept  up  constantly 
on  the  hearth,  and  the  doors  on  both  sides  left  open  day 
and  night. 

Returning  home  to  this  hospitable  mansion  in  the 
dusk  of  the  evening  of  the  day  following,  I  was  sur- 
prised to  see,  in  a  grove  of  trees  near  the  court-yard  of 
the  farm,  a  large  wood-fire  blazing  on  the  ground. 
Over  the  fire  hung  three  cauldrons,  filled,  as  I  after- 
wards learned,  with  hog's  lard,  and  three  old  negro  wo- 
men, in  their  usual  drab-coloured  costume,  were  leaning 
over  the  cauldrons,  and  stirring  the  lard  to  clarify  it. 
The  red  glare  of  the  fire  was  reflected  from  their  faces, 
and  I  need  hardly  say  how  much  they  reminded  me 
of  the  scene  of  the  witches  in  Macbeth.  Beside  them, 
moving  slowly  backwards  and  forwards  in  a  rocking- 
chair,  sat  the  wife  of  the  overseer,  muflled  up  in  a 
cloak,  and  suffering  from  a  severe  cold,  but  obliged  to 
watch  the  old  slaves,  who  are  as  thoughtless  as  chil- 
dren, and  might  spoil  the  lard  if  she  turned  away  her 
head  for  a  few  minutes.  When  I  inquired  the  mean- 
ing of  this  ceremony,  I  was  told  it  was  "  killing  time," 
this  being  the  coldest  season  of  the  year,  and  that  since 
I  left  the  farm  in  the  morning  thirty  hogs  had  been 
sacrificed  by  the  side  of  a  running  stream  not  far  oflT. 

11* 


I 


:,  i 


1 


'     '  I  I 


126 


PEVLR    AND    AOLE. 


CiMr.  VJii. 


These  were  dentined  to  serve  us  winter  provisions  for 
the  negroes,  of  whom  there  were  about  a  hmuhed  on 
this  plantation.  To  8iip|)ly  all  of  them  with  f(M)d, 
clothes,  and  medical  attendants,  younpr,  old,  and  impo- 
tent, as  well  as  the  able-lK)died,  is  but  a  portion  of  the 
expense  of  slave-labour.  They  must  be  continually 
superintended  by  trustworthy  whites,  who  mij^ht  often 
perform  no  small  part  of  the  task,  and  far  more  cirec- 
tively,  with  their  own  hands. 

I  fossilized  for  three  days  very  diligently  at  Shell 
Blutr,  obtaining  more  than  forty  species  of  shells,  chiefly 
casts,  referable  to  the  Eocene  formation ;  of  which  I 
shall  speak  by-and-hy. 

Resuming  our  voyage,  thirty  miles  further  down  the 
river,  in  another  large  cotton  steam-boat,  we  were 
landed  at  Stony  Bluff,  in  Georgia,  where  I  wished  to 
examine  the  rocks  of  burr-stone.  There  was  no  living 
being  or  habitation  in  sight.  The  large  steamer  van- 
ished in  an  instant,  sweeping  down  the  swollen  river  at 
the  rate  of  seventeen  miles  an  liour,  and  it  seemed  as 
if  we  had  been  dropped  down  from  a  balloon,  with  our 
luggage,  in  the  midst  of  a  wilderness.  I  began  by  ex- 
ercising my  hammer  on  the  burr-stone  of  tliis  low  blulF; 
a  cellular  kind  of  flint,  sometimes  used  for  millstones, 
and  full  of  silicifled  corals  and  minute  shells,  and,  as  I 
afterwards  found,  by  aid  of  a  powerful  microscope,  of 
sponges.  It  is  an  Eocene  formation,  and  alternates 
with  beds  of  red  loam.  After  making  a  collection  of 
specimens,  I  walked  about  the  wood,  and  found  a  lone 
house,  at  the  door  of  which  a  woman  was  sitting,  in  a 
languid  state  of  health.  She  said  she  had  just  recav- 
ered  from  the  fever,  or  chill ;  and  among  other  inqui- 
ries, asked  when  we  had  last  had  this  complaint.    On 


Chap.  viii. 

•ovisions  for 
luindrt'tl  on 
I  with  l'o<»J, 
1,  and  iuipo- 
jiMion  of  the 
I  continually 
)  nii^lit  olten 
xr  more  elTcc- 

ntly  at  SVicU 
shells,  chiefly 
;  of  which  1 

thcr  down  the 
oat,  we  were 
jre  1  wished  to 
B  was  no  Uving 
e  steamer  van- 
swollen  river  at 
i  it  seemed  as 
illoon,  with  our 
1  he§an  by  ex- 
)f  tliis  low  blutT; 
{  for  millstones, 
shells,  and,  as  I 
microscope,  of 
and  alternates 
r  a  collection  of 
md  found  a  lone 
was  sitting,  in  a 
B  had  just  recav- 
nong  other  inqui- 
s  complaint.    On 


Chap.  viii. 


PINE    KOIIESTS    OP    GlIUROIA. 


m 


being  told  we  hud  never  had  it,  she  said,  "  I  should  like 
to  live  ill  your  coiujtry,  fi)r  auioni;  the  Whites  there  i:t 
not  one  in  this  section  of  Georgia  that  has  escaped." 
It  is  true,  that  consiunption,  so  conuuou  in  the  Norlh- 
crn  states,  and  so  often  fatal,  is  unknown  here  ;  but  the 
universality  of  the  ague  makes  these  low  districts  in'tho 
Southern  states  most  uncjiviable  dwelling-places.  The 
best  season  for  a  geological  tour  in  this  part  of  Georgia 
and  South  Carolina,  cast  of  the  mountains,  is  from 
Decemljcr  to  April  inclusive. 

I  waited  for  the  return  of  the  owner  of  the  lone 
hou^<e,  and  told  him  I  wished  to  visit  the  plantation 
of  Colonel  Jones,  at  Millhaven.  He  consented  to  let 
me  hire  his  barouche  with  one  horse,  telling  me  I  must 
send  it  back  the  best  way  I  could,  after  finding  my  own 
way  for  twelve  miles  through  the  pine  forests,  as  he 
could  spare  me  no  driver.  The  lanes  through  the  wood 
were  numerous,  and  a  storm  had  blown  down  so  many 
tall  pines  across  the  road,  each  of  which  it  was  neces- 
sary to  circumnavigate,  that  we  thought  ourselves  for- 
tunate when  we  arrived  safe  at  the  destined  haven. 
My  new  host  added  to  the  kindness  and  frankness  of  a 
Southern  planter,  what  I  had  little  expected  in  the  midst 
of  this  forest,  a  strong  love  for  my  favourite  pursuits, 
and  guided  me  at  once  to  Jacksonborough,  and  other 
neighbouring  places,  best  worthy  the  attention  of  a  ge- 
ologist. 

We  had  many  long  rides  together  through  those 
woods,  there  being  no  underwood  to  prevent  a  horse 
from  galloping  freely  in  every  direction.  The  long- 
leaved  pines  emit  a  faint  odour  somewhat  resembling 
that  of  the  hyacinth,  and  their  bright-green  foliage  was 
fi'xely  brought  out  against  the  clear  blue  sky.    The  air 


128 


LAND   TORTOISE. 


Chap.  vin. 


!     I 


was  balmy,  and  unusually  warm,  even  for  Geoigia  in 
the  first  week  of  January.  We  saw  several  butterflies, 
one  of  a  bright  yellow  colour,  and  bats  flying  about  in 
the  evening.  The  croaking  of  the  frog  and  the  chirp- 
ing of  the  cricket  were  again  heard.  They  had  been 
silent  a  few  days  before,  when  the  air  was  cooler.  The 
sheep,  which  remain  out  in  these  woods  all  the  winter^ 
are  now  followed  by  lambs  about  three  weeks  old.  I 
saw  many  black  squirrels  here,  but  only  heard  of  the 
opossum,  racoon,  bear,  and  alUgator,  without  seeing  any. 
A  few  days  ago,  an  alligator  was  shot  fourteen  feet 
long,  in  the  act  of  carrying  off  a  pig  ;  and  the  sports- 
men complain  to  me  that  they  devour  their  dogs  when 
they  follow  the  deer,  which,  on  the  first  alarm,  usually 
take  to  the  Savannah  river. 

I  frequently  observed  the  holes  of  the  gopher,  a  kind 
of  land-tortoise,  which  burrows  in  the  sand,  and  is  now 
hybernating  below  ground.  P^our  or  five  inhabit  one 
hole ;  their  eggs  are  rather  smaller  than  a  hen's.  They 
are  gregarious,  and  in  sunmier  are  seen  feeding  ten  or 
twelve  together  on  the  low  shmbs.  They  are  said  to 
be  very  strong  for  their  size,  and  a  negro-woman  as- 
sured a  lady  of  our  party  that  she  was  so  light  that  she 
might  be  "toted  by  a  gopher."  We  also  saw  small 
hillocks,  such  as  are  thrown  up  by  our  moles,  made  by 
a  very  singular  animal,  which  they  call  a  salamander, 
because,  I  believe,  it  is  often  seen  to  appear  when  the 
woods  are  burnt.  It  is  not  a  reptile,  but  a  species  of 
rat  {Pseudostotna  pitietorum),  with  pouches  on  its 
cheeks. 

On  quitting  IMillhaven,  instead  of  continuing  my 
voyage  down  the  river,  I  hired  a  carriage  to  convey  us 
to  the  town  of  Savannah,  a  distance  of  nearly  one  hun- 


I    i 


Chap.  vin. 

ir  Georgia  in 
al  buttevflies, 
ing  about  in 
md  the  chiip- 
icy  had  been 
s  cooler.   The 
all  the  winter, 
weeks  old.    I 
yr  heard  of  the 
3Ut  seeing  any. 
L  fourteen  feet 
md  the  sports- 
lieir  dogs  when 
alarm,  usually 

!  gopher,  a  kind 
and,  and  is  now 
five  inhabit  one 
a  hen's.   They 
n  feeding  ten  or 
'hey  are  said  to 
legro-woman  as- 
so  light  that  she 
E5  also  saw  small 
r  moles,  made  by 
lU  a  salamander, 
appear  when  the 
,  but  a  species  of 
1  pouches  on  its 

f  continuing  my 
•iage  to  convey  us 
)f  nearly  one  Uun- 


Chaf.  VIII. 


TURKi:.!-  BUZZARUS. 


129 


dred  miles.  Here  and  there  I  went  down  from  the 
high  road  to  examine  the  river-cliffs,  consisting  of  bright 
red-coloured  loani;  red  and  grey  clay,  and  wliite  sand. 
At  Hudson's  Reach  and  other  points  I  found  Eo- 
cene shells  and  fishes'  teeth,  chiefly  of  the  genera  Mt/- 
liohates  and  Lamna.  One  day,  on  returning  from 
the  river,  I  came  suddenly  in  the  wood  on  some  turkey- 
buzzards  feeding  on  a  dead  hog.  I  had  often  seen  since 
we  crossed  the  Potomac  these  large  black  and  grey  birds 
soaring  at  a  great  height  in  the  air,  but  I  was  now  sur- 
prised to  see  one  of  them  perch  on  a  stump  a  few  yards 
from  me,  and  seem  perfectly  fearless.  In  our  last  day's 
journey,  I  remarked,  for  the  first  time  in  America,  a 
large  flight  of  rooks,  some  wheeling  about  in  the  air, 
others  perched  on  trees. 

Near  the  village  of  Ebenezer  we  passed  over  a  long 
causeway,  made  of  logs,  which  for  three  quarters  of  a 
mile  was  under  water.  The  tall  cedars  {Cupressus 
disticha),  and  other  trees  arching  over  and  forming  a 
long  aisle,  reminded  me  exactly  of  the  descriptions 
given  of  the  canals  in  the  Great  Dismal  Swamp. 
Some  of  the  myrtles  in  these  wet  grounds  are  very 
Iragi'ant. 

We  were  pursuing  a  line  of  road  not  much  frequent- 
ed of  late,  since  the  establishment  of  the  railway  from 
Augusta  to  Charleston.  Our  arrival,  therefore,  at  the 
inns  was  usually  a  surprise,  and  instead  of  being  wel- 
comed, we  were  invariably  recommended  to  go  on  far- 
ther. When  once  admitted,  we  were  made  very  com- 
fortable, having  our  meals  with  the  family,  and  being 
treated  more  like' guests  than  customers.  On  one  occa- 
sion our  driver,  to  whose  brother  our  carriage  and  horses 
belonged,  fell  in  with  the  son  of  a  neighbouring  planter, 


II, 


ni 


% 


% 


130 


ARRIVAL    AT   SAVANNAH. 


Chap.  viii. 


who  reproached  him  in  a  friendly  manner  for  not  hav- 
ing come  to  his  house  the  night  before,  and  brought  us 
with  him.  The  social  equality  which  prevails  here 
arises  not  so  much  from  the  spirit  of  a  republican  gov- 
ernment, as  from  the  fact  of  the  whites  constituting  an 
aristocracy  for  whom  the  negroes  work.  Had  we 
availed  ourselves  of  letters  of  introduction  freely  offered 
to  us,  we  might  have  passed  from  the  house  of  one  hos- 
pitable planter  to  another,  and  heard  as  little  of  reckon- 
ings at  inns  as  Don  Quixote  expected,  after  his  study 
of  the  histories  of  knights  errant. 

Jan.  10.  1842. — On  the  tenth  day  after  leaving  Au- 
gusta, we  arrived  at  Savannah,  from  which  town  I  im- 
mediately set  out  on  an  excursion  through  a  flat, 
swampy  country,  resembling  a  large  delta,  to  Beauly 
and  the  Vernon  river,  about  fifteen  miles  to  the  south- 
east. I  went  by  Heyner's  Bridge,  on  the  White  Bluff 
creek,  to  see  a  spot  about  twelve  miles  from  Savannah, 
where  I  had  learnt  from  Dr.  Habersham  that  bones  of 
the  mastodon  and  other  extinct  mammalia  had  been 
discov^ed.  The  bed  of  clay,  about  six  feet  thick,  con- 
taining them,  can  only  be  seen  at  low  water,  and  '±  de- 
scended to  it  in  a  boat  when  the  tide  was  out ;  and  by 
the  aid  of  the  negroes,  obtained  the  grinder  of  the 
common  American  mastodon.  The  stratum  enclosing 
these  and  other  bones  rests  immediately  on  sand  con- 
taining marine  shells  of  living  species,  and  is  covered 
by  the  mud  of  a  freshwater  swamp,  in  which  trees 
grow,  and  when  thrown  down  by  the  winds,  become 
occasionally  imbedded.  One  of  the  teeth  given  to  me 
from  this  place  by  Dr.  Habersham  was  ascertained,  by 
Mr.  Owen,  to  be  referable  to  his  new  genus,  Mylodon. 
Mr.  Hamilton  Couper  afterwards  sent  me  from  a  similar 


Chap.  viii. 

for  not  hav- 
i  brought  us 
prevails  here 
jubUcan  gov- 
nstituting  an 
i.     Had  we 
freely  offered 
ise  of  one  hos- 
tile of  reckon- 
fter  his  study 

er  leaving  Au- 
ich  town  I  im- 
irough  a  flat, 
elta,  to  Beauly 
53  to  the  south- 
le  White  Bluff 
rom  Savannah, 
1  that  bones  of 
nalia  had  been 
feet  thick,  con- 
vater,  and  1  de- 
asout;  and  by 

grinder  of  the 
ratum  enclosing 
Jy  on  sand  con- 
,  and  is  covered 

in  which  trees 
s  winds,  become 
;eth  given  to  me 
s  ascertained,  by 
renus,  Mylodon. 
iie  from  a  similar 


Chaf.  viii. 


FOSSIL    REMAINS. 


L31 


^; 


geological  position,  farther  south  in  Georgia,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Altamaha,  the  tooth  of  a  megatherium. 
It  is  evident,  from  his  observations  and  my  own,  that  at 
a  comparatively  recent  period  since  the  Atlantic  was 
inhabited  by  the  existing  species  of  marine  testacea, 
there  was  an  upheaval  and  laying  dry  of  the  bed  of 
the  ocean  in  this  region.  The  new  land  supported 
forests  in  which  the  megatherium,  mylodon,  mastodon, 
elephant,  a  species  of  horse  different  from  the  common 
one,  and  other  quadrupeds,  lived,  and  were  occasion- 
ally buried  in  the  swamps.  There  have  also  been  sub- 
sidences on  the  coast,  and  perhaps,  far  inland ;  for  in 
many  places  near  the  sea  there  are  signs  of  the  forest 
having  become  submerged,  the  remains  of  erect  trees 
being  seen  enveloped  in  stratified  mud  and  sand:  I 
even  suspect  that  this  coast  is  now  sinking  down,  at  a 
slow  and  insensible  rate,  for  the  sea  is  encroaching  and 
gaining  at  many  points  on  the  freshwater  marshes. 
Thus  at  Beauly  I  found  upright  stumps  of  trees  of  the 
pine,  cedar,  and  ilex  covered  with  Uve  oysters  and  bar- 
nacles, and  exposed  at  low  tide  ;  the  deposit  irt.which 
they  were  buried  having  been  recently  washedifaway 
from  around  them  by  the  waves.  I  also  observed,  that 
the  flat  country  of  marshes  was  bounded  on  its  western 
or  inland  side  by  a  steep  bank  or  ancient  cliff  cut  in  the 
sandy  tertiary  strata,  and  tliere  are  other  inland  cliffs. of 
the  same  kind  at  different  heights  implying  the  suc- 
cessive elevation  above  the  sea  of  the  whole  tertiary 
region. 

Not  only  in  South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  but  also  m 
the  low  region  of  North  Carolina,  as,  for  example,  fif- 
teen miles  below  Newbern,  the  remains  of  extinct 
quadrupeds  have  been  met  with.     The  tooth  of  a 


X. 
% 


i  I 


Si 


■H 


132 


FOSSIL    REMAINS. 


Cbaf.  VIII. 


horse  found  in  the  latter  place,  with  the  bones  of  mas- 
todon, elephant,  and  other  inanunalia,  was  presented  to 
me  by  Mr.  Conrad,  remarkably  curved,  and  agreeing, 
in  this  respect,  with  a  fossil  tooth  discovered  by  Mr. 
Darwin  on  the  north  side  of  the  Plata,  in  Entre  Rios, 
in  South  America,  where  it  accompanied  the  mastodon 
and  megatherium.  As  no  species  of  equus  existed  in 
the  New  World  when  it  was  discovered  in  the  fifteenth 
century,  naturalists  were  inclined,  at  first,  to  be  in- 
credulous in  regard  to  the  real  antiquity  of  this  fossil ; 
but  as  the  top'h  is  more  curved  than  in  the  recent 
horse,  a^s,  or  zebra,  the  fossil  species  may  have  diiFered 
as  widely  from  any  living  representative  of  this  genus, 
as  the  zebra  or  wild  ass  from  the  horse  of  Arabia. 

It  is  a  fact  well  worthy  of  attention  that  in  the 
southern  states  of  the  Union  so  many  extinct  quadru- 
peds, such  as  the  mastodon,  elephant,  megatherium, 
mylodon,  and  horse,  should  occur,  agieeing,  some  spc- 
cificially  and  others  in  generic  characters,  with  those 
found  in  corresponding  latitudes  in  South  America  near 
the  river  Plata,  and  in  Patagonia,  or  between  latitudes 
31°  and  50°  S.,  and  that  in  both  hemispheres  they 
should  be  accompanied  by  marine  fossil  shells  of  recent 
species,  as  Mr.  Darwin  has  shown  to  be  the  case  in  the 
Pampas.  Yet,  although  these  quadrupeds  are  so 
modern,  geologically  speaking,  as  to  have  co-existed 
with  the  present  testaceous  fauna,  we  cannot  attribute 
their  extermination  to  the  agency  of  man  ;  for  it  is  not 
the  huge  beasts  alone,  but  quadrupeds  as  small  as  the 
rat,  which  have  become  extinct  in  South  America 
within  tlie  same  period,  as  Mr.  Lund,  the  Danish  nat- 
uralist, has  shown  in  reference  to  Brazil. 

On  the  beach  at  Beauly  I  saw  numerous  foot-traclcB 


Chap.  viii. 

les  of  mas- 
piescnted  to 
d  agreeing, 
3red  by  Mr. 
Entrc  Rios, 
le  mastodon 
IS  existed  in 
the  fifteenth 
6t,  to  be  in- 
,f  this  fossil ; 
11  the  recent 
have  diiTcred 
)f  this  genus, 

Arabia. 
I  that  in  the 
Ltinct  quadru- 
megathcriurn, 
ng,  some  spc- 
;rs,  with  those 

America  near 
ween  latitudes 
iiispheres  they 
shells  of  recent 
the  case  in  the 
lupeds   are  so 
lavc  co-existed 
annot  attribute 
m  ;  for  it  is  not 
IS  small  as  the 
south  America 
he  Danish  nat- 

1. 

reus  foot-trada 


Chap.  viii. 


LAND   CRABS. 


133 


of  racoons  and  opossums  on  the  sand,  which  had  been 
made  during  the  four  hours  immediately  preceding,  or 
since  the  ebbing  of  the  tide.  Already  some  of  them 
were  half  filled  witii  fine  blown  sand,  showing  the  pro- 
cess by  which  distinct  casts  may  be  formed  of  the  foot- 
steps of  animals  in  a  stratum  of  quartzose  sandstone. 
I  remarked  that  the  tracks  of  the  racoons  could  be 
traced  at  several  points  to  bods  of  oysters,  on  which 
these  animals  are  said  to  feed.  The  negroes  told  me, 
that  sometimes  a  large  oyster  closes  his  shell  suddenly, 
and  holds  the  racoon  fast  by  his  paw  till  the  returning 
tide  comes  up  and  drowns  him. 

The  surface  of  the  beach  for  half  a  mile  was  cover- 
ed with  small  round  pellets  of  mud  as  thick  as  hail- 
stones, of  the  size  of  currants  and  peas,  and  arranged 
for  the  most  part  in  small  heaps.  These  are  made  by 
thousands  of  land  crabs  ( Gelasimus  vocaiis  ?),  which 
they  call  fiddlers,  because  the  motion  of  their  claws  is 
compared  to  the  arm  of  a  player  on  the  violin.  By 
the  side  of  each  heap  was  a  perpendicular  hole  several 
inches  deep,  into  which  when  alarmed  the  crab  retreats 
sideways,  sometimes  disappearing,  but  often  leaving  the 
larger  claw  projecting  above  for  want  of  room.  They 
make  these  holes  by  rolling  the  wet  sand  into  pellets, 
and  then  bringing  up  each  ball  separately  to  the  sur- 
face. 

A  planter  of  this  country  told  me  it  was  amusing  to 
sec  a  flock  of  turkies  driven  down  for  the  first  time  from 
the  interior  to  feed  on  the  crabs  in  the  marine  marshes. 
They,  at  first,  walk  about  in  a  ludicrous  state  of  alarm, 
expecting  their  toes  to  be  pinched,  but  after  a  time,  one 
bolder  than  the  rest  is  tempted  by  hunger  to  snap  up  a 
small  fiddler,  after  which  the  rest  fall  to  and  devour 

12 


t!i 


U 


u 


PASSPOllTS    REQUIRKD    FOR    SLAVES.      CiiAr.viIl. 


them  by  thousands.  On  my  way  through  the  woods 
in  this  low  region  near  Savannali,  I  saw  some  fine 
magnolias  ninety  feet  high,  pahnettos  six  feet  high  in 
tufts,  and  oaks  hung  with  white  pendant  wreaths, 
sometimes  ten  feet  long,  of  the  wiry  parasitic  Tillandsia 
usnaeoides.  This  climber,  which  also  festoons  the 
woods  in  South  America,  much  resembles  the  lichen 
called  in  England  "  old  man's  beard,"  but  is  a  pheno- 
gamous  plant. 

In  order  to  see  the  bed  of  clay  containing  the  bonea 
of  the  mastodon  at  Heyner's  Bridge,  it  was  necessary 
for  me  to  be  on  the  ground  by  daybreak  at  low  tide. 
With  this  view,  I  left  Savannah  in  the  middle  of  the 
night.  The  owner  of  the  property  kindly  lent  me  his 
black  servant  as  a  guide,  and  I  found  him  provided 
with  a  passport,  without  which  no  slave  can  go  out  af- 
ter dusk.  The  exact  streets  through  which  he  was  to 
pass  in  his  way  to  me  were  prescribed,  and  had  he 
strayed  from  this  route  he  might  have  been  committed 
to  the  guard-house.  These  and  other  precautionary 
regulations,  equally  irksome  to  the  slaves  and  their  mas- 
ters, are  said  to  have  become  necessary  after  an  insur- 
rection brought  on  by  abolitionist  missionaries,  who  are 
spoken  of  here  in  precisely  the  same  tone  as  incendi- 
aries, or  beasts  of  prey  whom  it  would  be  meritorious  to 
shoot  or  hang.  In  this  savage  and  determined  spirit  I 
heard  some  planters  speak  who  were  mild  in  their  man- 
ners, and  evidently  indulgent  to  their  slaves.  Nearly 
half  the  entire  population  of  this  state  are  of  the 
coloured  race,  who  are  said  to  be  as  excitable  as  they 
are  ignorant.  Many  proprietors  live  with  their  wives 
and  children  quite  isolated  in  the  midst  of  the  slaves,  so 


CuAr.viii. 

the  woodg 

some  fine 
et  high  ill 
t  wreaths, 
,  Tillandsia 
;stoons   the 

the  lichen 
is  a  pheno- 

y  the  bonea 
IS  necessary 
at  low  tide, 
iiiddlc  of  the 
lent  me  his 
tiim  provided 
an  go  out  ar- 
ch he  was  to 
and  had  he 
en  committed 
precautionary    - 
md  their  mas- 
fter  an  insur- 
aries,  who  are 
ne  as  incendi- 
I  meritorious  to 
rmined  spirit  I 
1  in  their  man- 
laves.    Nearly 
,te  are  of   the 
:citable  as  they 
ith  their  wives 
if  the  slaves,  so 


Ciur  VIII. 


NEGRO   COACHMAN. 


135 


that  the  danger  of  any  popular  movement  is  truly  ap- 
palling. 

The  negroes,  so  far  as  I  have  yet  seen  them,  whe- 
ther in  domestic  service  or  on  the  farms,  appear  very 
cheerful  and  free  from  care,  better  fed  than  a  large  part 
of  the  labouring  class  of  Europe  ;  and,  though  meanly 
dressed,  and  often  in  patched  garments,  never  scantily 
clothed  for  the  climate.  We  asked  a  woman  in 
Georgia,  whether  she  was  the  slave  of  a  family  of  our 
acquaintance.  She  replied,  merrily,  "  Yes,  I  belong  to 
them,  and  they  belong  to  me."  She  was,  in  fact,  born 
and  brought  up  on  the  estate. 

On  another  occasion  we  were  proceeding  in  a  well- 
appointed  carriage  with  a  planter,  when  we  came  un- 
expectedly to  a  dead  halt.  Inquiring  the  cause,  the 
black  coachmap  said  he  had  dropped  one  of  his  white 
gloves  on  the  road,  and  must  drive  back  and  try  to  find 
it.  He  could  not  recollect  within  a  mile  where  he  had 
last  seen  it :  we  remonstrated,  but  in  vain.  As  time 
pressed,  the  master  in  despair  took  off  his  own  gloves, 
and  saying  he  had  a  second  pair,  gave  them  to  him. 
When  our  charioteer  had  deliberately  put  them  on,  we 
started  again. 


n 


,  'If 


i! 


i   ;  ! 


If 


\h 


hi! 


:     !: 


I 


136 


RETURN    TO   CHARLESTON. 


Chap,  vu 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Return  to  Charleston. — Fossil  Human  Skeleton. — Geographical  Di»' 
tribution  of  Quadrupeds  in  North  America. — Severe  Frost  in  1835 
in  South  Carolina. — White  Limestone  of  the  Cooper  River  and 
Santee  Canal. — Referred  to  the  Eocene  Period,  not  intermediate 
between  Tertiary  and  Chalk. — LimC'Sinks. — Species  of  Shells  com- 
mon to  Eocene  Strata  in  America  and  Europe. — Causes  of  the  in- 
creased  Insalubrity  of  the  Low  Region  of  South  Carolina Con- 
dition of  the  Slave  Population. — Cheerfulness  of  the  Negroes : 
their  Vanity. — State  of  Animal  Existence. — Invalidity  of  Mar- 
riages.— The  Coloured  Population  multiply  faster  than  the  Whiles. 
—Effects of  the  Interference  of  Abolitionists. — Laws  against  Edit- 
cation.^-Gradual  Emancipation  equally  desirable  for  the  Whites 
and  the  Coloured  Race. 

Jan.  13.  1842. — From  Savannah  we  returned  to 
Charleston  in  a  steam-sliip,  on  board  of  which  we  found 
an  agreeable  party,  consisting  chiefly  of  officers  of  the 
U.  S.  army  returning  from  Florida,  where  they  had 
nearly  brought  to  a  close  a  war  of  extermination  carried 
on  for  many  years  against  the  Seminole  Indians.  They 
gave  a  lively  picture  of  the  hardships  they  underwent 
in  the  swamps  and  morasses  during  this  inglorious 
campaign,  in  the  course  of  which  the  lives  of  perhaps 
as  many  whites  as  Seminoles  were  sacrificed.  The  war 
is  said  to  have  been  provoked  by  the  attacks  of  the  In- 
dians on  new  settlers. 

In  the  Museum  at  Charleston,  I  was  shown  a  fossil 
human  skull  from  Guadaloupe,  imbedded  in  solid  lime- 
stone, which  they  say  belongs  to  the  same  skeleton  of 
a  female  as  that  now  preserved  in  the  British  Museum, 
where  the  skuU  is  wanting. 


Chap.  U* 


Chat.  tx. 


SEVERE   FROST. 


137 


rraphicnl  Di»- 
Frost  in  1835 
»er  River  and 
t  inlermedittte 
,  of  Shells  com- 
tuses  of  the  in- 
arolina. — Coti' 
the  Negroes: 
lidity  of  Mar- 
han  the  Whiles. 
IS  against  Edu- 
for  the  Whiles 

returned  to 
lich  we  found 
fficers  of  the 
jre  they  had 
nation  carried 
dians.   They 
3y  underwent 
lis  inglorious 
es  of  perhaps 
:ed.   The  war 
cks  of  the  In- 
shown  a  fossil 
1  in  solid  lime- 
iie  skeleton  of 
itish  Museum, 


Dr.  Bachman,  whom  I  saw  here,  is  enj^aged  in  a 
great  work  on  the  quadrupeds  of  North  America.     He 
pointed  out  to  me  the  boundary  of  several  distinct  zones 
of  indigenous  mammalia,  extending  east  and  west  on 
this  continent,  where  there  are  no  great  natural  barri- 
ers running  in  the  same  direction,  such  as  mountain 
ridges,  deserts,  or  wide  arms  of  the  sea  to  check  the 
migrations  of  species.    The  climate  alone  has  been  suf- 
ficient to  limit  their  range.     The  mammiferous  fauna 
of  the  State  of  New  York,  comprising  about  forty  spe- 
cies, is  distinct  from  that  of  the  arctic  region  600  miles 
north  of  it,  and  described  by  Dr.  Richardson.     It  is 
equally  distinct  from  that  of  South  Carolina  and  Geor- 
gia, a  territory  about  as  far  distant  to  the  south.     In 
Texas,  where  frosts  are  unknown,  another  assemblage 
of  species  is  met  with.     The  opossum,  for  example,  of 
that  country  {Didelphis  cancrivora)  is  different  from 
that  of  Virginia.     The  latter  {Didelphis  virginiana) 
is  one  of  those  species  which  is  connnon  to  many  prov- 
inces, extending  from  Florida  as  far  north  as  Penn- 
sylvania, where  it  has  been  observed  while  the  snow 
was  lying  two  feet  deep  on  the  ground.     The  racoon 
has  a  still  wider  habitation,  ranging  as  did  the  buffalo 
originally  {Bison  americanus)  from  the  north  of  Can- 
ada to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.     But  these  are  exceptions 
to  the  general  rule.     Similar  restrictions  seem  to  have 
prevailed  in  the  era  of  extinct  quadrupeds,  the  great 
mastodon  {M.  giffantetis)  having  evidently  abounded 
in  Canada  and  New  York,  as  well  as  Kentucky  and 
Georgia,  while  the  megatherium  and  mylodon  were  al- 
most entirely  confined  to  the  Southern  States. 

When  discoursing  here  on  the  influence  of  climate, 
many  accounts  were  given  me  of  a  frost  which  visited 

12* 


If 


1 


f       ( 


138 


TERTIARY    FORMATIONS. 


Chap.  ix. 


i'l' 


T'     m 


if 


!     ,1 


II       i 

i 

I 


II 


Charleston  n  February,  1835,  so  severe  that  wine  wag 
frozen  in  bottles.  Tlie  tops  of  the  Pride-of-Iudia  tree, 
of  Chinese  origin,  were  killed  :  all  the  oranges,  of  which 
there  were  large  orchards,  were  destroyed.  Beds  of 
oysters,  exposed  between  high  and  low  water  mark, 
perished  in  the  estuaries,  and  the  effluvia  from  them 
was  so  powerful  as  to  injure  the  health  of  the  inhabi- 
tants. 

Several  planters  attribute  the  failure  of  the  cotton 
crop  this  year  (1842)  to  the  unusual  size  and  number 
of  the  icebergs,  which  floated  southwards  last  spring 
from  Hudson's  and  Baffin's  Bays,  and  may  have  cooled 
the  sea  and  checked  the  early  growth  of  the  cotton 
plant.  So  numerous  and  remote  are  the  disturbing 
causes  in  meteorology !  Forty  degrees  of  latitude  in- 
tervene between  the  region  where  the  ice-floes  are 
generated  and  that  where  the  crops  are  raised,  whose 
death-warrant  they  are  supposed  to  have  carried  with 
them. 

Before  I  visited  the  Southern  States,  I  had  heard 
from  several  American  geologists  that  calcareous  rocks 
occurred  there  intermediate  in  age  between  the  chalk 
and  the  tertiary  formations,  and  helping  to  fill  the  void 
w^hich  separates  those  two  well-marked  eras  in  the  Eu- 
ropean series.  Having  satisfied  myself  that  all  the 
white  limestone  of  the  Savannah  river  was  referable  to 
the  Eocene  epoch,  I  now  set  out  to  determine  whether 
the  same  could  be  said  of  that  exposed  to  view  on  the 
Cooper  river  and  Santee  canal,  about  thirty  miles  north 
of  Charleston.  I  was  accompanied  in  an  excursion  of 
a  week  by  Dr.  Ravenel,  who  kindly  offered  to  be  my 
guide  ;  and  we  first  visited  a  plantation  of  his,  called 
"The  Grove,"  near  the  mouth  of  the  Cooper  river, 


Chap.  ix. 


Chap.  iz> 


FOSSIL    MASTODON. 


139 


t  wine  was 
-India  tree, 
;s,  of  which 
.  Beds  of 
'ater  mark, 
from  them 
the  inhabi- 


[  had  heard 
;areous  rocks 
en  the  chalk 
)  fill  the  void 
IS  in  the  Eu- 
that  all  the 
s  referable  to 
nine  whether 
)  view  on  the 
ly  miles  north 
excursion  of 
ed  to  be  my 
of  his,  called 
Cooper  river, 


where,  in  the  marshes,  there  are  deep  deposits  of  clay 
and  sand,  enclosing  the  stools  and  trunks  of  the  cy- 
press, hickory,  and  cedar,  often  imbedded  in  an  erect 
position,  which  must  have  grown  in  fresh  water,  but 
arc  now  sunk  six  and  even  sixteen  feet  below  tiie  level 
of  high  water.  Every  where  there  are  proofs  of  the 
coast  having  sunk,  and  the  subsidence  seems  to  have 
gone  on  in  very  modern  times  ;  for  some  old  cedars  still 
standing  on  the  surface  have  been  killed  by  the  encroach- 
ment of  the  salt  water.  We  had  come  from  Charles- 
ton in  a  small  private  steam-boat,  and  after  passing 
Strawberry  Ferry  and  entering  the  Santee  Canal,  were 
allowed  by  favour  to  pass  through  the  locks  without 
paying  tolls,  and,  contrary  to  the  usual  regulations, 
which  exclude  steam-boats.  The  thoughtless  negroes 
allowed  the  chimney  of  our  vessel  to  get  so  choked  up 
with  soot  that  we  were  soon  forced  to  quit  this  convey- 
ance, and  travel  by  land.  The  barges  on  the  canal 
are  constructed  of  different  sizes,  so  that,  after  going 
down  laden  with  cotton,  they  are  put  one  into  another 
when  returning  empty,  and  thus  escape  a  large  part  of 
the  tolls  at  the  locks.  The  slaves  are  fond  of  cock- 
fighting  ;  and  on  the  prow  of  each  barge  there  stood 
usually  a  game-cock,  perched  as  if  he  were  the  ensign 
of  the  vessel. 

We  passed  the  Brygon  Swamp,  about  forty  miles 
north  of  Charleston,  where  the  remains  of  the  masto- 
don were  found  when  the  canal  was  cut.  Wild  ani- 
mals might  still  be  mired  in.  the  same  morass,  latitude 
33*^  20'  N.,  showing  that  these  fossils  in  the  Southern 
States  occur  in  precisely  the  same  geological  position  as 
in  New  York  and  Canada.  We  slept  at  Wantcot,  and 
then  went  by  Eutaw  to  Vance's  Ferry  on  the  Santeo 


140 


EOCENE    SHELLS. 


Chap.  tx. 


river,  then  to  Cave  Hall,  examining  the  tertiary  white 
marl  and  lUiiestone,  and  collecting  the  hIicIIh  and  corals 
contixincd  in  it.  Lime-sinkn,  or  t'linnel-shaped  cavities, 
are  frequent  in  thin  country,  arising  from  natural  tun- 
nels and  cavities  in  the  subjacent  limestone,  through 
some  of  which  subterranean  rivers  How.  An  account 
was  given  me  of  a  new  hollow  which  opened  about  fif- 
teen years  ago,  about  two  miles  south  of  the  Santee 
river,  into  which  a  nude  drawing  a  plough  sank  sud- 
denly. About  a  hundred  yards  from  the  same  spot,  I 
saw  a  large  cavern  sixty  feet  high  at  its  entrance  in  the 
white  limestone,  from  the  mouth  of  which  flowed  a 
small  stream.  The  undermining  effect  of  such  rivers 
explains  the  linear  arrangement  so  common  in  lime- 
sinks  in  South  Carolina  and  Georgia.  The  walls  of 
such  '-sinks"  are  vertical,  and  the  strata  exposed  to 
view  consist  usually  of  clay  and  sand,  which  rest  upon 
the  limestone. 

From  Cave  Hall  we  went  in  a  north-westerly  direc- 
tion to  Stoudenmire  Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  San  tee, 
where  the  siliceous  burr-stone  and  brick-red  loam  ap- 
pear above  the  wliite  limestone.  In  the  course  of  this 
examination,.  I  satisfied  myself  that  the  limestone  and 
white  marl,  a  formation  which  must  sometimes  amount 
to  120  feet  in  thickness,  in  the  low  region  of  Cooper 
river  and  the  Santee  canal,  are  a  continuation  of  the 
same  Eocene  deposit  which  I  had  seen  at  Shell  Bhiff, 
at  Jacksonboro',  and  other  places  on  the  Savannah  riv- 
er, and  w^hich  I  afterwards  observed  at  Wilmington, 
in  North  Carolina.  I  found  many  species  in  all  these 
places,  common  to  those  of  Claiborne,  in  Alabama, 
where  the  largest  number  (more  than  200)  of  Eocene 
shells  in  a  good  state  of  preservation  have  been  met 


Ciixr.  tx< 

tiary  white 
s  and  coiulrf 
icd  cuvitii^s, 
laturnl  tun- 
ic, througli 
An  account 
cd  about  lif- 
'  tlic  Santce 
1  sank  sud- 
samc  spot,  I 
liancc  in  liie 
ch  flowed  a 
f  such  livers 
non  in  hme- 
^he  walls  of 
a  exposed  to 
lich  rest  upon 

iresterly  direc- 
if  the  Santee, 
red  loam  ap- 
course  of  this 
imestone  and 
times  amount 
ion  of  Cooper 
uation  of  the 
It  Shell  Bluff, 
Savannah  riv- 

Wilmington, 
cs  in  all  these 

in  Alabama, 
DO)  of  Eocene 
lave  been  met 


Ciur.  ix. 


KOCr.NF.    FO,S.StL«. 


141 


with ;  and  are  described  and  llj^urcd  in  the  works  of 
Mr.  Conrad  and  ]\Ir.  Lea  of  IMiiladelphia.  Dr.  Ra- 
venel  pointed  out  to  nie  sonic  reiiiarkablc  new  spocica 
of  Scutdla  at  the  (irove,  near  ihe  iiioutli  of  the  Coop- 
er river,  and  these  were  accompanied  by  several  well- 
known  Eocene  sliells  like  those  of  Claiborne.  The 
same  white  limestone  and  marl  may  be  said  to  be 
continuous  for  forty  miles,  from  the  CJrove  (o  the  San- 
tce river. 

At  Eutaw  and  other  points,  corals  of  the  genera 
Idmonca,  Acystis,  Pustulopora,  Viiicularia,  and  Es- 
chara  occur,  with  a  species  of  Scalaria,  and  other 
shells.  These  fossils,  and  the  rock  containing  them, 
reminded  me  so  much  of  the  straw-colouie<l  limestone 
of  the  cretaceous  formation  i-ccn  on  the  banks  of  Tim- 
6er  Creek  in  New  Jersey,  that  I  do  not  wonder  that 
some  errors  had  arisen  from  confounding  the  tertiary 
and  secondary  deposits  of  the  south.  The  species, 
however,  prove  on  closer  inspection  to  be  dilFerent. 
This  lithological  resemblance  of  the  rocks  seems  to 
have  led  to  the  admission  into  Dr.  Morton's  list  of 
the  cretaceous  fossils  of  North  America ;  a  list  for  the 
most  part  very  correct,  of  the  following  seven  tertiary 
species  which  really  came  from  the  Eocene  strata  of 
South  Carolina.  These  are,  Balanus  pcrcgrhius, 
Pecten  calvatns,  P.  membranosus,  Tcrebratnla  la- 
chrj/ma,  Convs  gyratus,  Scutella  Lyelli,  and  Echi- 
nus infulatus  (see  Morton's  Syiwpsis,  pi.  10.).  The 
belief  that  all  these  species  were  common  to  the  chalk 
and  tertiary  strata  led  naturally  to  the  opinion  that  in 
the  Southern  States  a  formation  existed  intermediate 
in  character  between  the  rocks  of  the  secondary  and 
those  of  the  tertiary  periods. 


m 


'\ 


in 


mmt 


142 


EOCENC    SHELLS. 


ClIAF.  IX 


1^: 


If,  h 


■t 


I  consider  the  burr-sf.one  and  associated  clays  and 
sands  of  Stoudenniire  and  Aikin,  Soutli  Carolina,  and 
of  Augusta,  Millhaven,  and  Stony  Bluff,  in  Georgia,  to 
belong  also  to  an  Eocene  deposit,  and  to  be  higlier  in 
the  series  than  the  white  limestone  formation. 

Out  of  125  species  of  Eocene  shells  which  I  collected 
in  the  Southern  States,  or  which  were  presented  to  me, 
I  have  only  been  able  to  identify  seven  with  European 
species  of  the  same  epoch.  These  are  Trochus  ag- 
glutitiaiis,  Solarium  canal iculatum,  Boncllia  tere- 
bellata,  Infundibulum  trGchiforme,  Lilhodomus  dac- 
tylus,  Cardita  platiicosta,  and  Ostrea  bellovacina. 

But  there  are  a  considerable  number  of  representa- 
tive species,  and  an  equal  number  of  forms  peculiar  to 
these  older  tertiary  strata  of  America. 

The  Ostrea  scllcBformis,  which  may  be  considered 
as  representing  the  O.  Jlabellula  of  the  Paris  and 
London  basins,  appears  to  be  one  of  the  most  charac- 
teristic and  widely  disseminated  Eocene  shells  in  Vir- 
ginia, South  Carohna,  and  Georgia,  for  I  found  it  at 
Shell  Bluff  and  on  the  Santee  river,  and  the  James  riv- 
er, ill  Virginia. 

On  the  banks  of  the  Cooper  river,  we  heard  occa- 
sionally the  melodious  and  liquid  note  of  the  mocking- 
bird in  the  woods.  It  is  of  a  fearless  disposition,  and 
approaches  very  near  to  the  houses.  I  can  well  imagine 
that  in  summer,  when  the  leaves  are  out,  and  the  flow- 
ers in  full  splendour,  this  region  must  be  most  beautiful. 
But  it  is  then  that  the  planters  are  compelled  by  the 
fever  and  ague  to  abandon  their  country  seats.  It  was 
not  so  formerly.  When  the  English  army  was  cam- 
paigning on  the  Cooper  and  Santee  rivers  in  the  revo- 
hitiomry  war,  they  encamped  with  impunity  in  places 


»    ' 


Chap.  ix. 


MALARIA    IN    SOUTH    CAROLINA. 


143 


clays  and 
roUna,  and 
Georgia,  to 

higher  in 

n. 

L I  collected 
Qted  to  me, 
1  European 
rochus  ag- 
ncllia  tere- 
domus  dac- 
llovacina. 
'  reprcsenta- 
1  pecuUar  to 

e  considered 
5  Paris  and 
most  charac- 
hells  in  Vir- 
found  it  at 
le  James  riv- 

heard  occa- 
ihe  mocking- 
position,  and 
well  imagine 
and  the  flow- 
lost  beautiful, 
jelled  by  the 
seats.    It  was 
my  was  cam- 
:s  in  the  revo- 
nity  in  places 


where  it  would  now  be  death  to  remain  for  a  few  days 
in  the  hot  season.  I  inquired  what  could  have  caused 
so  great  a  change,  and  found  the  phenomenon  as  much 
a  matter  of  controversy  as  the  origin  of  the  malaria  in 
Italy.  The  clearing  away  of  the  wood  from  large 
spaces  is  the  chief  alteration  in  the  physical  condition 
of  tliis  region  in  the  course  of  the  last  sixty  years, 
whereby  the  damp  and  swampy  grounds  undergo  an- 
nually the  process  of  being  dried  up  by  a  burning  sun. 
Marshes  which  are  overflowed  by  the  tide  twice  in  every 
twenty-four  hours  near  the  neighbouring  coast,  both  in 
South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  are  perfectly  healthy.  T)i\ 
Arnold  remarks,  in  his  Roman  History,  that  Rome  was 
more  healthy  before  the  drainage  of  the  Campagna,  and 
a'hen  there  was  more  natural  wood  in  Italy  and  in 
northern  Europe  generally.  In  the  southern  States  of 
the  Union  there  are  no  fevers  in  winter,  at  a  season 
when  there  is  no  large  extent  of  damp  and  boggy  soil 
exposed  to  a  hot  sun,  and  undergoing  desiccation. 

On  our  way  home  from  Charleston,  by  the  railway 
from  Orangeburg,  I  observed  a  thin  black  line  of  charred 
vegetable  matter  exposed  in  the  perpendicular  section 
of  the  bank.  The  sand  cast  out  in  digging  the  railway 
had  been  thrown  up  on  the  original  soil,  on  which  the 
pine  forest  grew ;  and  farther  excavations  had  laid  open 
the  junction  of  the  rubbish  and  the  soil.  As  geologists, 
we  inay  learn  from  this  fact  how  a  thin  seam  of  vege- 
table matter,  an  inch  or  two  thick,  is  often  the  only 
monument  to  be  looked  for  of  an  ancient  surface  of  dry 
land,  on  which  a  luxuriant  forest  may  have  grown  for 
thousands  of  years.  Even  this  seam  of  friable  matter 
may  be  washed  away  when  the  region  is  submerged, 
and,  if  not,  rain-water  percolating  freely  through  the 


r>. 


'3  'M 


144 


CHEERFULNESS    OF   THE    NEGROES.        Ciwr.  «. 


II      ! 


sand  may,  in  the  course  of  ages,  gradually  carry  away 
the  carbon. 

As  there  were  no  inns  in  that  part  of  South  Carolina 
through  which  we  passed  in  this  short  tour,  and  as  we 
were  every  where  received  hospitably  by  the  planters,  I 
had  many  opportunities  of  seeing  their  mode  of  life,  and 
the  condition  of  the  domestic  and  farm  slaves.  In  some 
rich  houses  maize,  or  Indian  corn,  and  rice  were  entirely 
substituted  for  wheaten  bread.  The  usual  style  of  liv- 
ing is  that  of  English  country  gentlemen.  They  have 
well-appointed  carriages  and  horses,  and  well-trained 
black  servants.  The  conversation  of  the  gentlemen 
turned  chiefly  on  agricultural  subjects,  shooting,  and 
horse-racing.  Several  of  the  mansions  were  surrounded 
with  deer-parks. 

Arriving  often  at  a  late  hour  at  our  quarters  in  the 
evening,  we  heard  the  negroes  singing  loudly  and  joy- 
ously in  chorus  after  their  day's  work  was  over.  On 
one  estate,  about  forty  black  children  were  brought  up 
daily  before  the  windows  of  the  planter's  house,  and  fed 
in  sight  of  the  family,  otherwise,  we  were  told,  the  old 
women  who  have  charge  of  them  might,  in  the  absence 
of  the  parents,  appropriate  part  of  their  allowance  to 
themselves.  All  the  slaves  have  some  animal  food 
daily.  When  they  are  ill,  they  sometimes  refuse  to 
take  medicine,  except  from  the  hands  of  the  master  or 
mistress ;  and  it  is  of  all  tasks  the  most  delicate  for  the 
owners  to  decide  when  they  are  really  sick,  and  wheu 
only  shamming  from  indolence. 

After  the  accounts  I  had  read  of  the  sufferings  of 
slaves,  I  was  agreeably  surprised  to  find  them,  in  gener- 
al, so  remarkably  cheerful  and  hght-hearted.  It  is  true 
that  I  saw  no  gangs  working  under  overseers  on  sugar- 


II 


'ii 


g.       Ciur-  «• 
carry  away 

uth  Carolina 
^v,  and  as  we 
he  planters,  I 
,dc  of  life,  and 

ves.    In  some 
e  were  entirely 
lal  style  of  Uv- 
^.    Tbcy  have 
id  well-trained 
the  gentlemen 
,  shooting,  and 
,vere  smrounded 

quarters  in  the 
r  loudly  and  joy- 
•  was  over.     On 
were  brought  up 
r's  house,  and  fed 
were  told,  the  old 
lit,  in  the  absence 

heir  allowance  to 
ome  animal  food 
metimcs  refuse  to 
s  of  the  master  or 
,ost  delicate  for  the 
lly  sick,  and  when 

f  the  sufferinga  of 
indthem,ingenei- 

-hearted.    U  is  true 
r  overseers  on  sugar- 


I 


Chap.  ix. 


^'1::GR0   VANITY. 


145 


plan tal ions,  but  out  of  two  iniiiions  and  a  half  of  slaves 
in  tlio  United  ytatos,  the  larger  proportion  are  engaged 
in  sue) I  farming  occupations  a))d  domestic  services  as  I 
Avitiies.<cd  in  Georgia  and  South  Carolina.     I  was  often 
for  day.s  togetiier  with  negroes  wlm  served  nio  as  guides, 
and  found  tlieni  as  talkative  and  chatty  as  children, 
usually  boa:^ting  of  their  master's  wealth,  and  their  ovrn 
pccidiar  merits.     At  an  inn  in  Virginia,  a  f(;uinl(;  slave 
asked  us  (o  guess  for  hovv"  many  dollars  a  year  she  was 
let  out  by  her  owner.     ^Ve  named  a  small  sum,  but 
she  told  us  cxultingly,  that  we  were  much  mider  the 
mark,  for  thclandloiil  paid  fifty  dollars,  or  ten  guineas  a 
year  for  her  hire.     A  good-humoured  butler,  at  another 
inn  in  the  same  state,  took  care  to  tell  me  that  his 
owner  got  ?A)l.  a  year  for  him.     The  cf)loured  steward- 
ess of  a  stcam-vcssci  was  at  great  pains  to  tell  us  her 
value,  and  how  she  came  by  the  name  of  Queen  Vic- 
toria.    AVhcn  we  recollect  tliat  the  dollars  are  not  their 
own,  we  can  hardly  refrain  from  smiling  at  the  childlike 
simolicity  with  which  they  express  their  satisfaction  at 
the  high  price  set  on  them.     That  price,  liowever,  is  a 
fiiir  test  of  their  intelligence  and  moral  worth,  of  which 
they  luive  just  reason  to  feel  proud,  nnd  their  pride  is  at 
least  flee  from  all  sordid  and  mercenaiy  considerations. 
We  might  even  say  that  they  labour  Mith  higher  mo- 
tives than  the  whites — a  disinterested  love  of  doing 
their  duty.     I  am  aware  that  we  may  reflect  and*  phi- 
losophise on  this  pecuhar  and  amusing  form  of  vanity, 
until  we  perceive  in  it  the  evidence  of  extreme  social 
degradation ;  but  the  first  impression  which  it  made 
upon  my  mind  was  very  consolatory,  as  I  found  it 
nnpossible  to  feel  a  painful  degree  of  commiseration  for 
persons  so  exceedingly  well  satisfied  with  themselves. 

13 


1'^ 


i 


}| 


!|i  .  a 


146 


NEGRO    WEDDING. 


Chap.  ii. 


'i\ :! 


• 


South  Carolina  is  one  of  tlio  few  states  where  there 
is  a  numerical  preponderance  of  slaves.  One  night,  at 
Charleston,  I  went  to  sec  the  guard-house,  where  there 
is  a  strong  guard  kept  constantly  in  arms,  and  on  the 
alert.  Every  citizen  is  obliged  to  serve  in  person,  or 
find  a  substitute ;  and  the  maintenance  of  such  a  force, 
the  strict  laws  against  importing  books  relating  to  eman- 
cipation, and  the  prohibition  to  bring  back  slaves  who 
have  been  taken  by  their  masters  into  free  states,  show 
that  the  fears  of  the  owner,  whether  well-founded  or  not, 
are  real. 

During  our  stay  at  Charleston,  we  were  present  at  a 
negro  wedding,  where  the  bride  and  bridegroom,  and 
nearly  all  the  company,  were  of  unmixed  African  race. 
They  were  very  merry.  The  bride  and  bridemaids  all 
dressed  in  white.  The  marriage  service  performed  by 
an  Episcopal  clergyman.  Not  long  afterwards,  when 
staying  at  a  farm-house  in  North  CaroUna,  I  happened 
to  ask  a  planter  if  one  of  his  negroes  with  whom  we  had 
been  conversing  was  married.  He  told  me.  Yes,  he 
Lad  a  wife  on  that  estate,  as  well  as  another,  her  sister, 
on  a  different  property  which  belonged  to  him;  but 
that  there  was  no  legal  validity  in  the  marriage  cere- 
mony. I  remarked,  that  he  must  be  mistaken,  as  an 
Episcopal  minister  at  Charleston  would  not  have  lent 
himself  to  the  performance  of  a  sacred  rite,  if  it  were 
nugatory  in  practice,  and  in  the  eye  of  the  law.  He 
replied,  that  he  himself  was  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and 
that  no  legal  validity  ever  had  been,  or  ought  to  be, 
given  to  the  marriage  tie,  so  long  as  the  right  of  sale 
could  separate  parent  and  child,  husband  and  wife. 
Such  separations,  he  said,  could  not  always  be  prevented, 
when  slaves  multiplied  fast,  though  they  were  avoided 


Chap,  i*- 

here  there 
le  night,  at 
vhcre  there 
ind  on  the 
1  person,  or 
uch  a  force, 
n<T  to  eman- 
slaves  who 
states,  show 
inded  or  not, 

;  present  at  a 
legroom,  and 
African  race. 
)rideniaids  all 
performed  by 
rwards,  when 
a,  I  happened 
whom  we  had 
I  me.  Yes,  he 
Lher,  her  sister, 
I  to  him;  but 
marriage  cere- 
listaken,  as  an 
not  have  lent 
rite,  if  it  were 
[  the  law.    He 
r  profession,  and 
51  ought  to  be, 
he  right  of  sale 
band  and  wife. 
lys  be  prevented, 
ley  were  avoided 


ClIAV.  IX. 


INCREASE    OF    SLAVES, 


147 


i''t 


by  the  masters  as  far  as  possible.  He  defended  the 
custom  of  bringing  up  the  children  of  the  same  estate 
in  common,  as  it  was  far  more  humane  not  to  cherish 
domestic  ties  among  slaves.  On  the  same  farm  I  talked 
with  several  slaves  who  had  been  set  to  fell  timber  by 
task- work,  and  had  finished  by  the  middle  of  the  day. 
They  never  appeared  to  be  overworked ;  and  the  ra- 
pidity with  which  they  increase  beyond  the  whites  in 
the  United  States  shows  that  they  are  not  in  a  state  of 
discomfort,  oppression,  and  misery.  Doubtless,  in  the 
same  manner  as  in  Ireland  and  parts  of  Great  Britain, 
the  want  of  education,  mental  culture,  and  respect  for 
themselves,  favours  improvident  marriages  among  the 
poor ;  so  the  state  of  mere  animal  existence  of  the  slave, 
and  his  low  moral  and  intellectual  condition,  coupled 
with  kind  treatment  and  all  freedom  from  care,  promote 
their  multiplication.  The  effect  of  the  institution  on 
the  progress  of  the  whites  is  most  injurious,  and,  after 
travelling  in  the  northern  States,  and  admiring  their 
rapid  advance,  it  is  most  depressing  to  the  spirits. 
There  appears  to  be  no  place  in  society  for  poor  wliites. 
If  they  are  rich,  their  slaves  multiply,  and  from  motives 
of  kindly  feeling  towards  retainers,  and  often  from  false 
pride,  they  are  very  unwilling  to  sell  them.  Hence 
they  are  constantly  tempted  to  maintain  a  larger  estab- 
lishment than  is  warranted  by  the  amount  of  their  capi- 
tal, and  they  often. become  involved  in  their  circum- 
stances, and  finally  bankrupt.  The  prudence,  temper, 
and  decision  of  character  required  to  manage  a  planta- 
tion successfully  is  very  great.  It  is  notorious  that  the 
hardest  taskmasters  to  the  slaves  are  those  who  come 
from  the  northern  free  States. 
I  often  asked  myself,  when  in  the  midst  of  a  large 


4\ 
0 


I!! 


lil 


Wi 


148 


CONVERSATION    WITH    PLANTERS,       Chap.  IX. 


I 


'. 


plantation,  what  steps  I  would  take  if  I  had  inherited 
such  a  property  from  British  ancestors.  I  thought,  first, 
of  immediately  emancipating  all  the  slaves,  but  I  was 
reminded  that  the  law  humanely  provides,  in  tliat  case, 
that  I  should  still  support  them,  so  that  I  might  ruin 
myself  and  family ;  and  it  would  still  be  a  question 
whether  those  whom  I  had  released  from  bondage 
would  be  happier,  or  would  be  prepared  for  freedom.  I 
then  proposed  to  begin  with  education  as  a  preliminary 
step.  Here  I  was  met  with  the  objection  that,  since 
the  abolition  movement  and  the  fanatical  exertions  of 
missionaries,  severe  statutes  had  been  enacted,  making 
it  penal  to  teach  slaves  to  read  and  write.  I  must  first, 
therefore,  endeavour  to  persuade  my  fellow  slave- 
holders to  repeal  these  laws  against  improving  the 
moral  and  intellectual  condition  of  the  slaves.  I  re- 
marked that,  in  order  to  overcome  the  apathy  and  re- 
luctance of  the  planters,  the  same  kind  of  agitation,  the 
same  "  pressure  from  without,"  might  be  indispensable, 
which  had  brought  about  our  West  Indian  emancipa- 
tion. To  this  my  American  friends  replied,  that  the 
small  number  of  our  slaves,  so  insignificant  in  com- 
parison to  their  two  and  a  half  millions,  had  niade  an 
indemnity  to  the  owner  possible  ;  also  that  the  free  ne- 
groes, in  small  islands,  could  always  be  held  in  subjec- 
tion by  the  British  fleets ;  and,  lastly,  that  England  had 
a  right  to  interfere  and  legislate  for  her  own  colonies, 
whereas  the  northern  States  of  the  Union,  and  foreign- 
ers, had  no  constitutional  right  to  intermeddle  with  the 
domestic  concerns  of  the  slave  States.  Such  interven- 
tion, by  exciting  the  fears  and  indignation  of  the  plant- 
ers, had  retarded,  and  must  always  be  expected  to  re- 
tard, the  progress  of  the  cause.    They  also  reminded 


3.      Chap.  «£• 

id  inlieritcd 
lought,  first, 
5,  but  1  was 
in  that  case, 

might  ruin 
e  a  question 
om  bondage 
r  freedom.    I 
a  preliminavy 
on  that,  since 
il  exertions  of 
acted,  making 
I  must  first, 

fellow  slave- 
UTiproving  the 
J  slaves.     1  re- 
apathy  and  re- 
of  agitation,  the 
)e  indispensable, 
idian  emancipa- 
replied,  that  the 
nificant  in  com- 
s,  had  made  an 
that  the  free  ne- 
,e  held  in  subjec- 
hat  England  had 
ler  own  colonies, 
iiion,  and  foreign- 
■vmeddle  with  the 
Such  intervcn- 
ation  of  the  plant- 
36  expected  to  re- 

ley  also  reminded 


CiiAr.  IX. 


ABOLITION    MOVEMENT. 


149 


■f 


mc  how  long  and  obstinate  a  struggle  the  West  Indian 
proprietors  had  made  against  the  emancipationists  in 
the  British  House  of  Commons ;  and  they  hinted,  that 
if  the  different  islands  had  been  directly  represented  in 
the  Lower  House,  and  there  had  been  Dukes  of  Ja- 
maica, Marquises  of  Antigua,  and  Earls  of  Barbadoes 
in  the  Upper  House,  as  the  slave  states  are  represented 
in  Congress,  the  measure  would  never  have  been  car- 
ried to  this  day. 

The  more  I  reflected  on  the  condition  of  the  slaves, 
and  endeavoured  to  think  on  a  practicable  plan  for  hast- 
ening the  period  of  their  liberation,  the  more  difficult 
the  subject  appeared  to  me,  and  the  more  I  felt  aston- 
ished at  the  confidence  displayed  by  so  many  anti-slavery 
speakers  and  writers  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 
The  course  pursued  by  these  agitators  shows  that,  next 
to  the  positively  wicked,  the  class  who  are  usually  called 
"  well-meaning  persons "  are  the  most  mischievous  in 
society.  Before  the  year  1830,  a  considerable  number 
of  the  planters  were  in  the  habit  of  regarding  slavery  as 
a  great  moral  and  political  evil,  and  many  of  them 
openly  proclaimed  it  to  be  so  in  the  Virginia  debates  of 
1831-2.  Tho  emancipation  party  was  gradually  gain- 
ing ground,  and  not  unreasonable  hopes  were  enter- 
tained that  the  States  of  Kentucky,  Virginia,  and 
INIaryland  would  soon  fix  on  some  future  day  for  the 
manumission  of  their  slaves.  This  step  had  already 
been  taken  in  most  of  the  States  north  of  the  Potomac, 
and  slavery  was  steadily  retreating  southwards.  From 
the  moment  that  the  abolition  movement  began,  and 
that  missionaries  were  sent  to  the  southern  States,  a 
re-action  was  perceived— the  planters  took  the  alarm- 
laws  were  passed  against  education— the  condition  of 

13* 


\i 


1    ; 


m 


m 


I! 


150 


CONDITION   OF   THE   SLAVES. 


Chap,  i* 


ions  f-^'y^fj^^^tl  Planu^rs  who  are  of  benevo- 
It  is  natural  '''»"!««    1  ,,^i,  .i^ves,  and  wl.o 

lent  dispositions,  and  »^u^g«.H^  „„^  j^at  the  Indians 
envy  the  northern  propr.^>^^°.^_,^^^„^  „„,  ,„  ,harc 
have  passed  away,  has  tne  g  .^^. ^^^^^ 

his  country  with  -no*t'sCvthoC  as  a  clasn,  is  held 
^hen  the  crueUy  of  '^^/^^yIa.    A  deep  sense  of  in- 
„p  to  the  ^''-^X:  „nn^gnation,  disinclines  them 
justice,  and  a  fe^ng  of  •     S  ^^^^^  ^j  emancipatton. 
to  persevere  in  advocating      „i«orbed  in  my  scientific 
I  was  so  much  o-»P-^;^!^"t.ouch  on  this  cx- 
pursuils  that  I  never  felt  '«mPT      ,he  planters  spoke 
Lng  subject,  and  *erefore  P^tap.  t     P    ^^ ^^^^,, 

out  their  sentiments  «<•  j™"^  E„„p„  as  here;  but 
they  said,  "is  - 3:^fo  work  have  the  alterna- 
i„  Europe  they  ^'l'"/"™^.  r',,ave  who  is  idle  has  the 
tive  of  starvation;  he  e  ^^'^f^  ^  ^.^ether  he 
alternative  of  ''•'^"^\f'^^^Z' M  and  clothed." 
works  or  not,  he  must  '^^'^  Jle^^^,,  in  which 
They  complained  <«  - -»*;  Xouved  in  the  free 

the  escape  of  ™»^^^y  ^^^'^y  said,  is  always  as- 
States.     Theit  mnocen«,  th  J  ^^^^.^  ^^^^^ 

sumed,  and  the  «"*y!:'^^,^,^''(^gitives  of.*n  consist 
U.ken  for  granted;  ^'^eie^^;^^^^^^^  have  been 


Chap,  i*- 

lanters,  by 
the  argu- 
ants,  came 
hat  slavciy 
)sitive  good 
hought  dif- 
3  their  opin- 

.  of  benevo- 
res,  and  who 
t  the  Indians 
not  to  share 
jatly  irritated 

class,  is  held 
p  sense  of  in- 
inchnes  them 
emancipation. 
,  my  scientific 
h  on  this  ex- 
planters  spoke 
j^     » Labour," 
.  as  here ;  but 
re  the  alterna- 
,  is  idle  has  the 
or,  whether  he 
I  and  clothed." 
lanner  in  which 
ured  in  the  free 
,  is  always  as- 
of  their  owners, 
ives  often  consist 
/ould  have  been 

are  left  at  large, 


ON. 


151 


Chap.  IX.  EFFECTS    OF    StUUKN    EMANCU'ATl 

because  their  masters  are  unwilling  to  lose  their  ser- 
vices by  imprisonment,  while  they  are  compelled  to 
support  them.  If  the  same  delinquents,  they  say, 
were  Hying  from  the  constable  in  a  free  State,  the  pub- 
lic would  sympathise  with  the  police  and  the  magis- 
trate, and  if  they  bore  on  their  backs  the  marks  of  for- 
mer chastisement  in  gaol,  the  general  desire  to  appre- 
hend them  would  be  still  more  eager.  Those  apolo- 
gies, and  their  assurance  that  they  found  it  to  their 
interest  to  treat  their  slaves  kindly,  had  no  ellect  in 
inducing  me  to  believe  that,  where  such  great  power 
is  intrusted  to  the  owner,  that  power  will  not  be  fre- 
quently abused  ;  but  it  has  made  me  desire  to  see  a 
fair  statement  of  the  comparative  statistics  of  crimes 
and  punishments  in  slave  states  and  free  countries.  If 
we  could  fairly  estimate  the  misery  of  all  offenders  in 
the  prisons,  penitentiaries,  and  penal  settlements  of 
some  large  European  province,  and  then  deduct  the 
same  from  the  sufferings  of  the  slaves  in  a  large  south- 
ern state  of  the  Union,  the  excess  alone  ought,  in  fair- 
ness, to  be  laid  to  the  charge  of  the  slave-owners. 
While  pointing^  out  the  evil  unreservedly,  we  should  do 
the  owner  the  justice  to  remember  that  the  system  of 
things  which  we  deprecate  has  been  inherited  by  him 
from  his  British  ancestors,  and  that  it  is  rarely  possible 
or  safe  to  bring  about  a  great  social  reform  in  a  few 
years. 

Had  the  measure  of  emancipating  all  the  slaves 
been  carried  through  as  rapidly  as  some  abolitionists 
have  desired,  the  fate  of  the  negroes  might  have  been 
almost  as  deplorable  as  that  of  the  aboriginal  Indians. 
We  must  never  forget  that  the  slaves  have  at  present  a 
monopoly  of  the  labour-market;   the  planters  being 


'I 


I 


<♦ 


N: 


Ui 


152 


DVJNU    OUT    OF    1-iLAVLUV, 


C'lIAl-.  t.\. 


bound  U>  l(.'wl  and  clotlio  tlien..  and  IxMnjr  unable  to 
tuiii  thcjn  oil"  and  take  wlnb'.  laboiirerri  in  tlmv  ])lace- 
Tlie  C(;l(>in«Ml  population,  tlicrcCorc,  are  protected  against, 
ibe    free   competition   of    the   Avhite   emigrants,    with 
V.  bom,  it"  they  were  once  liberated,  ibey  could  no  longev 
Hiuuu^'Halnlly  contend.     1  am  by  no  means  disposed  tt* 
a-sume  tluit  the  natural  (;ai)acitie3  of  the  negroes,  who 
always  jippeaix-d  to  mo  to  be  an  amiable,  gentle,  and 
inolU'iisive  race,  niay  not  be;  ctjual  in  a  moral  and  in- 
tellectual point  of  view  to  tlioisc  of  the  Europeans.  [)ro\  i- 
t\c{[  the  coloured  population  were  placed  in  circiim.stan- 
ca  equally  favourable  for  their  development.     IJut  it 
uuuld  be  vi-ionary  to  expect  that,  under  any  imagi- 
nable system,  this  race  could  at  once  acciuire  as  nuich 
energy,  and  become  as  rapidly  progressive,  as  the  Anglo- 
Savons.     To  in.spiro  them   with  sucii  an  aptitude  for 
rapid  aiKancement  nuist  be  the  work  of  time — the  result 
of  improvement  carried  on  through  several  successive 
generations.     Time  is  percisely  the  condition  for  which 
the  advtK^ates  of  the  immediate  liberation  of  the  blacks 
would  never  suiricicntly  allow.     The  great  experiment 
now  making  in  the  West  Indies  allbrds  no  parallel  case, 
because  the  climate  there  is  far  mon;  sultry,  relaxing, 
and  tr}  ing  to  Europeans,  than  in  the  Southern  States 
of  tlui  I'nion  ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  the  W  est 
Indian  |)roprietors  have  no  choice,  the  whites  being  so 
\'v.\v  in  munber,  that  the  services  of  the  coloured  raco 
are  indisiiensable, 

Ptofessor  'l'uck(!r,  of  Virginia,  has  endeavoured  to 
show,  that  the  density  of  population  in  the  slave  State.- 
will  amount,  in  about  sixty  years,  to  fifty*  persons  in  a. 
s(juar(i  mile.  Long  before  that  peiiod  arrives,  the  most 
productive  lands  will  have  been  all  cidti\ated,  and  some 


Cjiai'.  i.-^ 
unable  to 

,0(1  IX'jjfU""''"^' 

inl^,  wilU 
A  uo  U)n'4«"' 

ivcull*',  ^*»>*'^ 
3Kd  and  iu- 

^  circiunsUui  • 

acut.    Bi^t"'*^ 
f  auy  iniaiiv- 
^ihe  as  lUUcU 
us  the  Au<^lo- 
m  aptitude  for 
mc—t\ic  result 
eral  successvvc 
iiion  for  wliich 
1  of  tlie  blacks 
•eat  experiment 
10  parallel  case, 
.ultry,  relaxing, 
Soulliern  States 
that  the  Wost 
whites  hcing  wc 
he  colouied  race 

endeavoured  to 
1  the  slave  States 
fift>*  persons  in  «■ 

arrives,  the  most 

thatcd,  and  ^nue, 


ClIAf.  IX. 


ABOLITION    OK    SLAVKHY, 


153 


of  the  inferior  soils  resorted  to:  (he  price  of  Ial)Our  will 
fall  ^nadually  as  compared  to  the  means  of  subsiHtence, 
and  it  will,  at  length,  be  for  the  interest  of  the  masters 
to  liberate  their  slaves,  and  to  employ  the  more  eco- 
nomical and  productive  labour  of  freemen.     The  same 
causes  will  then  come  into  operation  which  formerly 
emancipated  the  villeins  of  western  Europe,  and  will 
one  day  set  free  the  serfs  of  Rnssia.     It  is  to  be  hoped, 
however,  that  the  planters  will  not  wait  for  more  than 
half  a  century  for  such  an  euthanasia  of  the  institution 
of  slavery  ;  for  the  increase  of  the  coloured  population 
in  sixty  years  would  be  a  formidable  evil,  since  in  this 
instance  they  are  not,  like  villeins  and  serfs,  of  the 
same  race  as  their  masters.     They  cannot  be  fused  at 
once  into  the  general  mass,  and  become  amalgamated 
with  the  whites,  for  their  colour  still  remains  as  the 
badge  of  their  former  bondage,  so  that  they  continue, 
after  their  fetters  are  removed,  to  form  a  separate  and 
inferior  caste.     How  long  this  slate  of  things  would 
last  must  depend  on  their  natural  capabilities,  moral, 
intellectual,  and  physical ;  but  if  in  these  they  be  equal 
to  the  whites,  they  would  eventually  become  the  dom- 
inant race,  since  the  cUmate  of  the  south,  more  con- 
genial to  their  constitutions,  would  give  them  a  decided 
advantage, 

A  philanthropist  may  well  be  perplexed  when  he 
desires  to  devise  some  plan  of  interference  which  may 
really  promote  the  true  interests  of  the  negro.  But  the 
way  in  which  the  planters  would  best  consult  their  own 
interests  appears  to  me  very  clear.  They  should  ex- 
hibit more  patience  and  courage  towards  the  abolition- 
ists, whose  influence  and  numbers  they  greatly  over- 
rate, and  lose  no  time  in  educating  the  slaves,  and 


i     '  ■ 

i 


itn 


:^^ 


(If 


164 


AUOI.ITIUN    itV    "ilLAVKUV 


r'liAi'.  IX, 


cnc()iini<4iiii<;  private  ni.imiinission  (o  pirpaio  (In;  way 
lor  g(!ii('i;il  ciiKintipHlion.  All  Hucm  ayrccd  thut  llic 
Bti'itcs  iiiosi  ri[)o  Cur  iliis  j«rt'iit  icl'orm  mo  .Murylaiid, 
Virginia,  North  ("aroliiia,  'IViiiichsoo,  Ktiutucky,  and 
Missouri.  Mxpcricncc  has  proved  in  flu!  norlhcru 
iSlatCri  thai,  t'liiaiR-ipatioJi  in)incdijit('ly  cliccks  ihe  hi- 
crease  of  the  coloured  |)opulation,  and  eauscrf  the  rela- 
tive nnniljer  ol'  th(!  whiles  to  augment  very  rapidly. 
Every  year,  in  proportion  as  the  north-western  .Slates 
lUi  up,  and  as  (ho  boundary  ol"  the  new  sotllers  in  tliu 
west  is  removed  farther  and  farther,  l)eyond  the  .Mis- 
sissippi and  Missouri,  the  cheaper  and  more  accessihlo 
lands  south  of  the  Potomac  will  oiler  a  more  templing 
field  for  coloinsation  to  the  swarms  of  j\ew  linglaiulers, 
who  are  averse  to  migrating  into  slave  states.  H(,'foro 
this  inlUix  of  white  labourers,  the  coloured  race  uiii 
give  way,  and  it  will  recpiiro  the  watchful  care  of  the 
philanthropist,  whether  in  the  north  or  south,  to  pre- 
vent them  from  being  tinown  out  of  employment,  and 
reduced  to  destitution. 

If  duo  exertions  be  made  to  cultivate  the  minds,  and 
protect  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  negroes,  and  it 
nevertheless  be  found  that  (hey  cannot  coiUend,  when 
free,  with  white  compedtors,  but  are  superseded  by 
them,  still  the  cause  of  humanity  will  have  gained. 
The  coloured  people,  though  their  numbers  remain 
stationary,  or  even  diminish,  may  in  the  mean  time  be 
happier  than  now,  and  attain  to  a  higher  moral  rank. 
They  would,  nioreover,  escape  the  cruelty  and  injus- 
tice which  are  the  invariable  conse(|uence3  of  the  ex- 
ercise of  irresponsible  power,  especially  where  authority 
must  be  sometimes  delegated  by  the  planter  to  agents 
of  inferior  education  and  coarser  feelings.     And  last, 


rii\»'.  It- 

\\w  way 
thill  ilio 
luryluiul, 
fUy,  iiiiil 
iiovlhcru 

4  the  rula- 
y  vapully- 
oni  Slater* 
Iciri  ill  il^« 
I  the  .Mi^- 

(»  U'lUplin!^ 

•iHglamlois, 
OS.  BeioitJ 
Q  vact!  uill 
cave  of  the 
Diilh,  to  jne- 
)yincnl,  and 

;  iiVuulrf,  and 
o-iocrf,  and  it 
>nlend,  when 
ipcrt^eded   hy 
have  gained, 
nbers  remain 
mean  time  be 
r  moral  rank. 
Ity  and  injus- 
:c9  of  the  cx- 
her(5  anlhority 
inter  to  agents 
ig3,     And  last, 


CuAr.  tx. 


AnOLITION    OF    BLAVKHY. 


155 


not  lea?<t,  omancipation  would  cflt'Ctnally  put  a  stop  to 
the  hicfidinjj,  scllinff,  and  cxiKjrtinjj  of  wlavcs  to  iho 
siii^ar-growing  Stateti  of  the  >South,  where,  unless  the 
accounts  wo  Uf^ually  rcatl  of  Hlavery  he  exauj^craled 
and  distorted,  the  life  of  the  Ufgro  id  .shortened  hy  su- 
vero  toil  and  suH'ering. 

Had  the  white  man  never  inter|X)flcd  to  transplant 
the  negro  into  the  New  World,  the  most  gcneroud 
asdcrters  of  the  liberties  of  the  coloined  race  would  have 
conceded  that  Africa  aflbrdcd  space  enough  for  their 
deveIo|)mcnt.  Neither  in  their  new  country,  nor  in 
that  of  their  origin,  whether  in  a  condition  of  slavery 
or  freedom,  have  they  as  yet  exhibited  such  superior 
qualities  and  virtues  as  to  make  us  anxious  thtit  ad- 
ditional millions  of  them  should  multiply  in  the  south- 
ern Stales  of  the  Union ;  still  less,  that  they  should 
overllow  into  Texas  and  Mexico. 


12 


'  I 


♦ 


H* 


166 


WILMINGTON. 


Chap.  z. 


I;   !   i 


II 


ir 


CHAPTER  X. 

Wilmington,  N.  C. — Mount  Vernon. — Return  to  Philadelphia.^- 
Reception  of  Mr.  Dickens. — Museum  and  Fossil  human  Bones. — 
Penitentiary. — Churches. — Religious  Excitement. — Coloured  Peo- 
ple of  Fortune. — Obstacles  to  their  obtaining  Political  and  Social 
Equality.  —  No  natural  Antipathy  between  the  Races.  —  Negro 
Reservations. 

Jan.  22. — I  now  turned  my  course  northwards,  and, 
after  a  short  voyage  in  a  steamer  from  Charleston, 
landed  at  Wilmington,  in  North  Carohna.  Here  I  col- 
lected fossils  from  tertiary  formations  of  two  ages,  the 
Miocene  marls,  and  an  underlying  Eocene  limestone, 
harder  than  that  of  Shell  Bluff  and  the  Santee  canal 
before  mentioned  ;  but  containing  many  of  the  same 
shells,  corals,  and  teeth  of  fishes.  I  then  went  by  rail- 
way to  South  Washington,  visiting  several  farms  on 
the  banks  of  the  north-east  branch  of  Cape  Fear  river. 
Here  I  found  cretaceous  green  marls,  similar  to  those 
which  I  had  seen  350  miles  to  the  N.  E.  in  New  Jersey, 
with  belemnites  and  other  characteristic  organic  re- 
mains, some  of  species  not  previously  known. 

On  several  of  the  small  plantations  here  I  found  the 
proprietors  by  no  means  in  a  thriving  state,  evidently 
losing  ground  from  year  to  year,  and  some  of  them 
talking  of  abandoning  the  exhausted  soil,  and  migra- 
ting with  their  slaves  to  the  south-western  States.  If, 
while  large  numbers  of  the  negroes  were  thus  carried 
to  the  South,  slavery  had  been  abolished  in  North  Car- 
olina, the  black  population  mig'.*  ere  this  have  been 


lladelphia.— 
lan  Bones. — 
'oloured  Peo- 
,1  and  Social 
ces.— Negro 


wards,  and, 
Charleston, 
Here  I  col- 
70  ages,  the 
e  limestone, 
;antee  canal 
jof  the  same 
..rent  by  rail- 
jal  farms  on 
e  Fear  river, 
lilar  to  those 
ISew  Jersey, 
organic  re- 

|e  I  found  the 
Lie,  evidently 
jme  of  them 
1   and  migra- 
|n  States.    H) 
thus  carried 
[in  North  Car- 
lis  have  been 


Chap.  x. 


MOUNT    VERNON. 


157 


reduced  considerably  in  numbers,  without  suffering 
those  privations  to  which  a  free  competition  with  wliite 
labourers  must  expose  them,  wherever  great  facilities 
for  emigration  are  not  afforded. 

A  railway  train  shooting  rapidly  in  the  dark  through 
the  pine  forests  of  North  Carolina  has  a  most  singular 
appearance,  resembling  a  large  rocket  fired  horizontally, 
with  a  brilliant  stream  of  revolvng  nparks  extending 
behind  the  engine  for  several  hundicd  yards,  each  spark 
being  a  minute  particle  of  wood,  wiiich,  after  issuing 
from  the  chimney  of  the  furnace,  remains  ignited  for 
several  seconds  in  the  air.  Now  and  then  these  fiery 
particles,  which  are  invisible  by  day,  instead  of  lagging 
in  the  rear,  find  entrance  by  favour  of  the  wind  through 
the  open  windows  of  the  car,  and,  while  some  burn  holes 
in  the  traveller's  cloak,  others  make  their  way  into  his 
eyes,  causing  them  to  smart  most  painfully. 

At  Petersburg,  Mr.  Ruffin,  the  agriculturist,  and  Mr. 
Tuomey,  accompanied  me  in  an  excursion  to  collect 
tertiary  fossils  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  I  examined 
with  much  instruction  the  organic  remains  in  their 
cabinets.  At  Washington  I  saw  M.  Nicollet,  and  had 
a  long  conversation  with  this  eminent  astronomer  and 
naturalist,  who  died  the  year  after.  He  had  just  re- 
turned from  a  geographical  and  geological  survey  of 
the  Far  West,  and  higher  parts  of  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi  and  Missouri.  He  showed  me  the  ammo- 
nites, baculites,  and  other  chalk  fossils  brought  by  him 
from  those  distant  regions,  which  establish  the  wide 
range  of  that  peculiar  assemblage  of  organic  remains 
characteristic  of  the  cretaceous  era. 

From  the  deck  of  our  steam-boat  on  the  Potomac  we 
saw  Mount  Vernon,  formerly  the  plantation  of  General 


ii 


i'l 


Hi  ■  I 

m 


J  58 


PHILADELPHIA. 


Chap.  x. 


Washington.  Instead  of  exhibiting,  Hkc  the  farms  in 
the  northern  State;^,  a  lively  picture  of  progress  and 
improvement,  this  property  was  described  to  me  by  all 
as  worn  out,  and  of  less  value  now  than  in  the  days  of . 
its  illustrious  owner.  The  bears  and  wolves,  tiiey  say, 
are  actually  re-entering  their  ancient  haunts,  which 
would  scarcely  have  happened  if  slavery  had  been 
abohshed  in  Virginia. 

The  air  was  balmy  on  the  Potomac  tlie  last  day  of 
January,  and  the  winter  had  been  so  mild  in  the  south- 
ern States,  that  we  were  sur[)rised,  on  recrossing  the 
Sus(juehanna  at  Havre  de  (iiace  in  Maryland,  to  sec 
large  masses  of  floating  ice  brought  down  from  the 
Appalachian  hills,  and  to  feel  the  air  sensibly  cooled 
while  we  were  ferried  over  the  broad  river.  It  struck 
me  as  a  curious  coincidence,  and  one  not  entirely  acci- 
dental, that,  precisely  in  this  part  of  our  journey,  I  once 
more  saw  the  low  grounds  covered  with  huge  boulders, 
reminding  me  how  vast  a  territory  in  the  South  I  had 
passed  over  without  encountering  a  single  erratic  :)lock. 
These  far  transported  fragments  of  rock  are  decitledly 
a  northern  phenomenon,  or  belong  to  the  colder  lati- 
tudes of  the  globe,  behig  rare  and  exceptional  in 
warmer  regions. 

Philadelphia,  Feb.  1. — The  newspapers  are  filled 
with  accounts  of  the  enthusiastic  reception  which  Mr. 
Charles  Dickens  is  meeting  with  every  where.  Such 
homage  has  never  been  paid  to  any  foreigner  since 
Lafayette  visited  the  States.  The  honouis  may  ap- 
pear extravagant,  but  it  is  in  the  nature  of  popular 
enthusiasm  to  run  into  excess.  I  find  that  several  of 
my  American  friends  are  less  disposed  than  I  am  to 
Bympathise  with  the  movement,  regarding  it  as  more 


;.v 


Chap.  *• 

arms  in 

ess  and 
le  by  all 
days  of . 
hey  say, 
s,  which 
ad   Ijeeii 


•atic  block, 
decidedly 
colder  lati- 
jut'onal  in 


1 


;is  arc  filled 
which  Mr. 
xere.     Such 
eigner  since 
uis  may  ap- 
e  of  popular 
at  several  of 
an  1  am  to 
,g  it  as  more 


Chap.  x. 


llliCEPTlOX    OF    MR.    niCKEN.S, 


159 


akin  to  lion-hunting  than  hero-worship.     They  ex- 
press a  doubt  whether  Walter  Scott,  had  he  visited  the 
U.  8.,  would  have  been  so  much  idolised.     Perhaps 
not ;  for  Scott's  poems  and  romances  were  less  exten- 
sively circulated  amongst  the  millions  than  the  talcs  of 
Dickons.     There  maybe  no  precedent  in  Great  liritain 
ibr  a  whole  people  thus  unreservedly  indulging  their 
i"(!clings  of  admiration  for  a  favourite  autlior  ;  but  if  so, 
llie  Amerijcans  deserve  the  more  credit  for  obeying  their 
waim  impulses.     Of  course,  many  who  attend  the  for- 
eigner's crowded  levee  are  merely  gratifying  a  vulgar 
curiosity  by  staring  at  an  object  of  notoriety  ;  but  none 
but  a  very  intelligent  population  could  be  thus  carried 
away  to  Hatter  and  applaud  a  man  who  has  neither 
rank,  wealth,  nor  power,  who  is  not  a  military  liero  or 
a  celebrated  political  character,  but  simply  a  writer  of 
genius,  whose  pictures  of  men  and  manners,  and  whose 
works  of  fiction,  have  been  here,  as  in  his  own  country, 
an  inexhaustible  source  of  interest  and  anmsement. 

When  at  Philadelphia  I  was  present  at  several  meet- 
ings of  the  Americafi  Philosophical  Society,  and  of  the 
Academy  of  Natural  Sciences.  In  the  museum  of  the 
former  botly  I  was  shown  a  limestone  from  Santas,  in 
Brazil,  procured  by  Captain  Elliott,  of  the  U.  S.  navy, 
which  contains  a  human  skull,  teeth,  and  other  bones, 
tf)gether  with  fragments  of  shells,  some  of  them  retain- 
ing a  portion  of  tbeir  colour.  The  rock  is  less  solid 
than  that  of  (iuadaloupe,  which  it  resembles.  We  are 
infornied,  that  the  remains  of  several  huidred  other 


human  skeletons,  imbedded  in  ?, 


Tl 


alcarecus  tufa, 


were  dug  out  at  the  same  place,  about  the  year  1827.* 

The  soil  covering  the  solid  stone  supported  a  growth  of 

*  American  Philosophical  Transactions,  1828,  p.  285 


9  « 


Il ^' 


uiExLUiiianm 


160 


SKELETON   OP    FOSSIL    MASTODON.        Cuav.  x. 


r   ii 


fi  i 


large  trees,  which  covered  the  face  of  a  hill  on  the  side 
of  the  river  Santas.  The  licight  above  the  sea  is  not 
mentioned,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  notes  ob- 
tained by  Dr.  Meigs  from  Captain  Elliott  were  not 
fuller.  I  observed  serpulai  in  the  rock,  a  shell  which 
the  natives  would  not  have  carried  inland  for  food.  On 
the  whole,  therefore,  I  should  infer,  though  we  need 
further  evidence,  that  this  stone  has  emerged  from  the 
sea,  and  that  there  had  been  previously  a  submergence 
of  dry  land,  perhaps  the  site  of  an  Indian  burial-ground. 

Dr.  Harlan,  the  zealous  and  accomphshed  osteolo- 
gist, who,  to  my  great  regret,  died  the  year  after  (1843), 
at  New  Orleans,  took  me  to  see  the  entire  skeleton  of 
the  large  fossil  mastodon,  or  so-called  Missourium, 
brought  by  Mr.  Koch  from  the  state  of  Missouri.  He 
pointed  out  several  errors  in  the  manner  in  which  the 
tusks  and  bones  were  put  together.  This  splendid 
fossil  has  since  been  purchased  by  the  British  Museum, 
taken  to  pieces  in  London,  and  correctly  set  up  again 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Owen.  It  is  the  largest  in- 
dividual of  the  species  {Mastodon  giganteus)  yet  dis- 
covered ;  for  Dr.  Harlan  and  I  compared  the  fenmr 
with  that  of  the  largest  mastodon  previously  known, 
from  the  state  of  New  York,  and  preserved  in  Peale's 
Museum  in  this  city.  The  dimensions  of  the  Phila- 
delphia skeleton  are  less  gigantic. 

I  spent  six  weeks  very  agreeably  in  this  city,  much 
of  my  time  being  occupied  in  delivering  a  short  course 
of  lectures  on  geology,  and  in  comparing,  with  the 
friendly  aid  of  several  naturahsts,  especially  Mr.  Conrad, 
the  fossils  collected  by  me  in  the  South  with  thos'i  pre- 
viously known,  most  of  which  are  preserved  in  the  pub- 
lic end  private  cabinets  here.     Mr.  Lea's  collection  of 


;,i 


|1: 


Chap.  x. 

the  side 

a  is  not 

lotcs  ob- 

verc  not 

$11  which 

)od.     On 

we  need 

from  the 

mergence 

il-ground. 

id  osteolo- 

ler  (1843), 

skeleton  of 

[issourium, 

souri.    He 
which  the 

lis  splendid 

h  Museum, 

't  up  again 
5  largest  in- 
>us)  yet  dis- 
the  femur 
isly  known, 
i  in  Peale's 
[f  the  Phila- 

city,  nmch 
I  short  course 
,,  with  the 
[Mr.  Conrad, 
Ith  thos'i  pre- 
iinthepub- 
Icollection  of 


Chap.  x.        PHILADELPHIA    PENITENTIAUY. 


161 


shelU,  which  we  visited  more  than  once,  rich  in  the 
Ihiviatile  species  of  North  America,  was  most  interesting 
to  me.  There  seems  no  end  to  the  freshwater  mussels 
of  tlie  genus  Unio,  as  \veli  as  other  Ihiviatile  forms, 
such  as  Melania,  which  liave  been  created  to  people 
the  waters  of  a  contiuent  unrivalled  in  the  number  of 
its  rivers,  all  so  copiously  filled  with  water  during  every 
season  of  the  year.  Such  an  obvious  relation  of  the 
zoological  to  the  geographical  peculiarities  of  a  great 
region  is  striking,  and  reminds  the  geologist  of  the  dif- 
ferent states  of  the  animal  creation,  which  have  accom- 
panied the  successive  changes  of  the  earth's  surface  in 
former  ages.  The  same  species  of  Unto,  and  of  other 
fresh-water  shells,  preserved  in  a  fossil  state  in  alluvial 
strata,  forming  terraces  one  above  the  otner  to  a  con- 
siilerable  height  above  the  Mississippi  and  its  tribu- 
taries, show  that  the  fauna  here  alluded  to.  so  modern 
in  the  earth's  history,  is  nevertheless  of  high  anticpiity, 
and  has  outlasted  some  important  modifuations  in  the 
shape  of  the  valleys  and  levels  of  the  North  American 
streams. 

We  were  taken  to  see  the  Penitentiary  at  Phila- 
delphia, where  all  the  prisoners  are  conliued  in  s(^p- 
arate  cells.  They  see  the  keepers,  chaplain,  and  occa- 
sional visiters,  by  which  the  rigoiu"  of  their  solitude  is 
miligated.  They  arc  taught  to  read,  and  have  numer- 
ous occupations.  1  f  we  recollect  that  this  establishment 
is  not  an  asylum  for  the  poor,  aged,  and  destitute,  like 
our  workhouses,  but  a  place  for  the  punishment  and 
n^form  of  criminals,  we  may  regard  it  as  a  humane 
institution,  and  it  appeared  to  me  admirably  managed. 

A  few  years  ago,  an  American  professor  being  asked 
at  the  end  of  a  short  stay  in  London  whether  he  had 

II* 


11 


*1 


!l! 


II 

^1 


162 


CHURCHES. 


Chap.  x. 


been  pleased  with  his  reception,  said  he  had  been  often 
invited  out  to  dinner,  but  no  one  during  his  whole  stay 
hud  oflered  him  a  seat  in  their  pew  in  church.  At 
Philadelphia,  besides  other  kinds  of  hospitaUty,  we  had 
certainly  no  reason  to  complain  of  any  want  of  atten- 
tion in  this  respect,  for  we  had  pressing  invitations  to 
private  pews  in  no  less  than  six  different  Episcopal 
chinches  soon  after  our  arrival,  of  which  we  availed 
ourselves  on  as  many  successive  Sundays,  and  were 
struck  with  the  handsome  style  of  the  buildings,  and 
the  comfortable  fitting  up  of  the  pews.  In  regard  to 
the  preaching  in  these  and  in  most  of  the  Episcopalian, 
Presbyterian,  Baptist,  and  Unitarian  churches  which  I 
entered  in  the  United  States,  I  thought  it  good,  and 
there  seemed  to  me  to  be  two  great  advantages  at  least 
in  the  voluntary  principle :  first,  that  the  ministers  are 
ill  no  danger  of  going  to  sleep ;  and,  secondly,  that  they 
concern  themselves  much  less  with  politics^  than  is  the 
case  with  us.  To  be  without  a  body  of  dissenters,  dis- 
satisfied with  their  exclusion  from  ecclesiastical  endow- 
ments is  a  national  blessing,  which  not  only  every 
statesman,  but  every  churchman,  will  admit.  I  am  by 
no  means  prepared  to  say  whether  there  may  not  be  a 
balance  of  evil  in  the  voluntary  system  sufficient  to 
outweigh  the  gain  alluded  to.  While  here,  I  heard 
complaints  of  the  religious  excitement  into  which  the 
city  had  been  just  thrown  by  the  arrival  of  a  popular 
New  England  preacher,  who  attracted  such  crowds  that 
at  length  all  the  sittings  of  his  church  were  monopo- 
lized by  the  fair  sex.  American  gallantry  forbids  that 
a  woman  should  remain  standing  while  gentlemen  are 
comfortably  seated  in  their  pews,  so  that  at  last  the  men 
were  totally  excluded.     Notice  was  immediately  given 


Chap.  *• 

en  often 
lole  stay 
•ch.    At 
we  had 
of  atten- 
ations  to 
Episcopal 
e  availed 
and  were 
lings,  and 
regard  to 
iscopalian, 
}s  which  I 
good,  and 
res  at  least 
inisters  are 
r,  that  they 
Ithan  is  the 
lenters,  dis- 
ical  endow- 
only  every 
I  am  by 
\y  not  be  a 
ufficient  to 
I  heard 
which  the 
a  popular 
[crowds  that 
Ire  monopo- 
Iforbids  that 
illenien  are 
st  the  men 
liately  given 


Chap.  x. 


EPISCOPAL    CHURCHES. 


163 


re, 


1 


that  certain  services  were  to  be  entirely  reserved  for  the 
men,  an  announcement  well  calculated  to  provoke  cu- 
riosity, and  to  tempt  many  a  stray  sheep  from  other 
folds.  It  was  then  thought  expedient  for  the  ministers 
of  rival  sects  to  redouble  their  zeal,  that  they  might  not 
be  left  behind  in  the  race,  and  even  the  sober  Episco- 
palians, though  highly  disapproving  of  the  movement, 
increased  the  number  of  their  services ;  so  that  I  was 
assured  it  would  be  possible  for  the  same  individual 
between  the  hours  of  seven  o'clock  in  the  morning  and 
nine  in  the  evening,  to  go  seven  times  to  church  in  one 
day.  The  consequences  are  too  like  those  occasionally 
experienced  in  the  "old  country,"  where  enthusiasm  is 
not  kindled  by  so  much  free  competition,  to  be  worth 
dwelling  upon.  Every  day  added  new  recruits  to  a 
host  of  ascetic  devotees,  and  places  of  public  amusement 
were  nearly  deserted :  at  last  even  the  innocent  indul- 
gence of  social  intercourse  was  not  deemed  blameless  : 
and  the  men  who  had  generally  escaped  the  contagion 
in  the  midst  of  their  professional  avocations,  found  a 
gloom  cast  over  society  or  over  their  domestic  circle. 
The  young  ladies,  in  particular,  having  abundance  of 
leisure,  were  filled  with  a  lively  sense  of  their  own  ex- 
ceeding wickedness,  and  the  sins  of  dieir  parents  and 
guardians. 

Many  of  the  most  respectable  Quaker  families  have 
recently  joined  the  Episcopal  church,  which  is  very 
fltmrishing  here,  not  only  in  this  city,  but  in  the  United 
States  generally,  having  quadrupled  its  numbers  in  a 
period  duriiii^  which  tin;  population  of  the  Union  has 
only  doul>led.  It  is  true  that  immediately  after  the 
revolutionary  war,  when  this  form  of  worship  was  iden- 
tified with  royaliet  opinions,  and  when  not  a  few  of  its 


4' 
«    • 


,|.|  .»»! 


164 


UlCU    MAN    OF   COLOLU. 


Chap.  x. 


professors  left  the  country  for  Canada,  Nova  Scotia,  or 
the  mother  country,  the  lipiscopal  eHtal)hishnient  was 
depressed  helow  its  natural  level.  Its  revival  and  rapid 
progress  arc  nevertheless  renuukable  in  tins  rcjjuhlicau 
country,  and  are  perhaps  partly  owing  to  the  possession 
of  large  endownu^nls,  especially  in  the  State  of  New 
York,  rendering  it  less  dependent  on  voluntary  contri- 
butions, and  partly  to  the  better  station  of  the  foreign 
immigrants  from  (Jreat  Britain  belonging  to  the  Angli- 
can church. 

I  am  assured,  that  if  the  salaries  paid  to  the  whole 
clergy  of  all  sects  in  the  I'uion  are  compared  to  those 
of  the  ministers  of  any  oilier  church  in  the  world  they 
will  be  found  to  be  in  excess  in  proportion  to  the  pop- 
ulation. Whether  this  be  true  or  not,  there  is  certainly 
no  lack  of  divinity  schools,  nor  of  ecclesiastical  build- 
ings, nor  of  crowded  congregations,  the  men  being  as 
regular  in  their  attendance  as  the  women  ;  and  the 
rapidity  with  which  new  churches  spring  up  in  the 
wilderness  is  probably  without  example  elsewhere. 

A  rare  event,  the  death  of  a  wealthy  man  of  colour, 
took  place  during  my  stay  here,  and  his  funeral  was 
attended  not  only  by  a  crowd  of  persons  of  his  own 
race,  but  also  by  many  highly  respectable  white  mer- 
chants, by  whom  he  was  held  in  high  esteem.  He  had 
made  his  fortune  as  a  sail-maker,  and  is  said  to  have 
been  worth,  at  one  time,  sixty  thousand  pounds,  but 
to  have  lost  a  great  part  of  his  riches  by  lending 
money  with  more  generosity  than  prudence.  I  was 
rejoicing  that  his  coloia*  had  proved  no  impediment  to 
his  rising  in  the  world,  and  that  he  had  been  allowed 
po  much  fair  play  as  to  succeed  in  over-topping  the 
majority  of  his  white  competitors,  when  I  learnt,  on 


Chap.  x. 


f'^iJ^'^    MEN    0,   COLOUR. 


I  learnt,  on 


ftuiher  imniirv  rl,-.i  .,,v        ■  .  '*" 

''<"-  'oi,i.  c.,n;,„.,"v  If;;'""''"'  ';-•■"-" «!"«. 

■""'■'.•fi«l,  because  „v„  „f   ,t  '  ^    ""  "-"'"'  ^■"''"-""y 
'"••"""ff  at  a  public  incet    /         ""' ''"'"  ^"''"■^<'d  a 

™i.ccrncd  tbom.      -^  '"''""^''  ""''  "•••cfc  „.|,ic|. 

In  many  stales,  tlie  free  bhrl-  I 

y  privileges  at  elec  font  .T'"  ™'"' "'"' "•"•"' 
stance  of  a  sinjffc  „,„„  T;'.  •"'  "^'e  «  not  an  i„. 

'"w,  having  been    hZu[f"'"l  "'"""«''  "'''^'iWe  by 

!»'"-■  Ti.e  sehorfr.  r  r'"'""^^"'"'  '-«'- 

Boston  arc  ^vell  „.a„a,t,        ,  ^",7'  l»P"ln.ion'„t 
''"■d  to  show  as  much  It  '' '''"'''''''  "'o 

»•  >"es.     To  what  e«  „      , ;  7  "!  .'»»™»'*r  -^  the 
vdopod  US  ad„h.  we  ,"''"'  '"'■'"""'»  >"i?lit  be  ,1„. 
""?;  for  if  i,,eir  &;'  ^  "'?  "^  J""  "»  ".cans  of  |„j 
"eated  with  „,„,,„     '^' "»/'■=   coldly  receive;,    „°r 

"•0  youn,.  Philad  iXs  bf"'"^^  '■"  "'^  ™-  »f 
P°-We  that  the  wJl  „"\- ,?'    ?""''"'  '"'  "  '«  "n- 
reached  in  literature  the  it  f  f  "T""'''  ''"  be 
Hitical  career.     Ifa^y-dr'f '''''"■''"■''  "  »'  ^ 
genius  than  the  res, ji  ™  ,  f"" i'^'^  ^'""'  «"■'  ^ner 
"ve  to  discouragern^nt     "  ^iX  ^ 'l-e  „-,„re  sensi- 
ftom  a  race  whose  real  son^       ^  "''""  "  P'<Keeds 
fejlow-citizens,  in  Cl  ^^Z  T  "''  ^"'°"'«' 
others  would  be  the  nmT       '^"".''"■™.  ho  of  all 
•nany  trials  attended  wi  b         ''''""''"'■     I'  ■■'  after 
"iUing  praise  and  apph" 'e  Zt^'tr "'  '''"°'™<'  ''^ 
'ntellectual  power  are  sbwl  "^'f-confidence  and 

educated  black  has  e.*  !     S"'"' =  """  ""  '-" 

'er  jet  had  an  opportunity  of 


I 

♦ 


?         ') 


^; 


100 


DEPRESSION    OF    NIXiUO    RACE. 


Tim  P.  X. 


! 


I 


ripening  or  displaying  superior  tal<M»lH  in  tliis  or  any 
other  civilised  country.  (Janadu  and  Ireland  teach  us 
how  much  time  and  how  many  generations  are  re- 
quired for  the  blending  together,  on  terms  of  perfect 
ecpiality,  both  social  ami  political,  of  two  nations,  the 
coiKjuerors  and  the  conquered,  even  where  both  are 
of  the  same  race,  and  decidedly  equal  in  their  natural 
capacities,  though  differing  in  religion,  manners,  and 
language.  But  when,  in  the  same  community^,  we 
have  two  races  so  distinct  in  their  physical  peculiari- 
ties as  to  cause  many  naturahsts,  who  have  no  desire 
to  disparage  the  negro,  to  doubt  whether  both  are  of 
tlie  same  species,  and  started  originally  from  the  same 
Btock ;  when  one  of  these,  found  in  Africa  in  a  savage 
and  unprogressive  state,  has  been  degraded,  by  those 
who  first  coloni;;ed  North  America,  to  the  lowest  place 
in  the  social  scale — to  expect,  under  such  a  combina- 
tion of  depressing  circumstances,  that,  in  half  a  cen- 
tury, and  in  a  country  where  more  than  six-sevenths 
of  the  race  are  still  held  in  bondage,  the  newly-eman- 
cipated citizens  shoidd,  under  any  form  of  government, 
attain  at  once  a  position  of  real  equality,  is  a  dream 
of  the  visionary  philanthropist,  whose  impracticable 
schemes  are  more  Ukely  to  injure  than  to  forward  a 
great  cause. 

In  the  West  Indies,  where  circumstances  are  far 
more  favourable  to  a  fair  experiment,  we  have  found 
how  much  easier  it  is  to  put  an  end  to  slavery  than 
to  elevate  the  blacks  to  an  equal  standing  with  the 
whites  in  society,  and  in  the  management  of  public 
affairs.  They  are  however  advancing  slowly ;  dnd, 
although  we  hear  complaints  of  commercial  losses, 
consequent  on  emancipation,  and  of  exports  of  sugar 


J 


Chap.  *• 

or  any 

L';ic\\  vi9 
arc  rc- 
pcrft'i^t 

om,  the 

)otb  are 
natural 

lers,  and 

inity,  we 

peculiari- 

no  desire 

(til  are  of 

the  same 

I  a  savage 

1,  by  those 

west  place 

,  combina- 

lalf  a  cen- 

x-sevenths 

wly-eman- 
wcrninent, 
is  a  dream 
ipracticable 
forward  a 

res  are  far 
Lave  found 
lavery  than 
Ig  with  the 
It  of  public 

|owly,  ^^^i 
L-cial  losses, 
Us  of  sugar 


Chap.  x. 


FRF.K    MEN   OP   COLOUR. 


107 


and  cofTco  fulling  ofl',  thrre  sconis  little  doubt  that  tim 
no«Tn)  population,  coniprisinjif  tlie  j^roat  bidk  of  the  in- 
habitants, are  better  informed,  better  clothed,  and 
liappier,  in  tlieir  own  way,  than  durinn-  the  period 
when  all  were  slaves.  A  jj^radnal  transfer  of  land  is 
going  on  in  Barbadoes,  Jamaica,  and  other  large  isl- 
ands, from  the  original  proprietors  to  the  negroes,  who 
are  abandoning  the  cultivation  of  sugar,  and  raising 
such  crops  and  fruits  of  the  earth  as  they  can  obtain 
with  moderate  labour.  There  has  not  been  time  to 
ascertain  whether  the  freed  men  will  ever  have  aspi- 
rations after  that  higher  civilization,  which  distin- 
guishes a  few  of  the  more  advanced  among  the  na- 
tions of  western  Europe  ;  but  this  problem  has  still  to 
be  solved  with  regard  to  tlie  Chinese  and  many  other 
large  sections  of  the  human  family. 

The  near  approach  to  universal  suffrage  in  the 
United  States  appears  to  me  one  of  the  most  serious 
obstacles,  both  to  the  disfranchisement  of  the  slaves 
in  the  South,  and  to  their  obtaining,  when  freed,  a 
proper  station  relatively  to  the  whites.  Wherever 
property  confers  the  right  of  voting,  the  men  of  colour 
can  at  once  be  admitted  without  danger  to  an  absolute 
equality  of  political  rights,  the  more  industrious  alone 
becoming  invested  with  privileges  which  are  withheld 
from  the  indigent  and  most  worthless  of  the  dominant 
race.  Such  a  recognition  of  rights  not  only  raises  the 
negroes  in  their  opinion  of  themselves,  but,  what  is  of 
far  more  consequence,  accustoms  a  portion  of  the  other 
race  to  respect  them.  In  the  free  states,  we  were  often 
painfully  reminded  of  the  wide  chasm  which  now  sep- 
arates the  whites  from  the  emancipated  man  of  colour. 

If  there  be  any  place  where  distinctions  of  birth, 


,       ! 


I  i 


ji  i. 


'!1 


I  ill 


is: 


Hi 
'Ai 

I 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


jtt  Ki   12.2 


lit 

■u 
u 


14.0 


IL25  III  1.4 


FhotogFaphic 

Sciences 

Corporatian 


as  WKT  MAM  STRHT 

WHSTM,N.Y.  I4SM 
(716)t72-4S03 


I 


.'I 


1G8 


DEPRESSED   CONDITION    OF 


Chap.  z. 


wealth,  station,  and  race  should  be  forgotten,  it  is  the 
temple  where  the  Christian  precept  is  inculcated  that 
all  men  are  equal  before  God.  On  one  occasion  in 
New  England,  when  we  were  attending  the  admin- 
istration of  the  sacranient  in  an  Episcopal  chiuch,  we 
saw  all  the  white  communicants  first  come  forward, 
and  again  retire  to  their  pews,  before  any  of  the  col- 
oured people  advanced,  most  of  whom  were  as  well 
dressed  as  ourselves,  and  some  only  a  shade  darker  in 
complexion.  In  another  Episcopal  church  in  New 
York,  the  order  and  sanctity  of  the  service  was,  for  a 
moment,  in  danger  of  being  disturbed  because  some  of 
the  whites  had  been  accidentally  omitted,  so  that  they 
came  to  the  altar  after  the  coloured  communicants. 
After  a  slight  confusion,  however,  our  feelings  were  re- 
lieved by  the  officiating  minister  proceeding  and  show- 
ing his  resolution  not  to  allow  any  interruption  from 
this  accident.  I  had  no  opportunity  of  witnessing  the 
good  example  said  to  be  set  by  the  Roman  Catholic 
clergy  in  prohibiting  all  invidious  distinctions  in  their 
churches ;  but  we  know  in  Europe  how  much  more 
the  poor  and  the  rich  t  -  ;  mingled  together  indifferently 
in  the  performance  of  their  devotions  in  Romanist 
churches  than  in  most  of  the  Anglo-protestant  con- 
gregations. 

The  extent  to  which  the  Americans  carry  their  re- 
pugnance to  all  association  with  the  coloured  race  on 
equal  terms  remained  to  the  last  an  enigma  to  me. 
They  feel,  for  example,  an  insurmountable  objection 
to  sit  down  to  the  same  table  with  a  well-dressed,  well- 
informed,  and  well-educated  man  of  colour,  while  the 
same  persons  would  freely  welcome  one  of  their  own 
race  of  meaner  capacity  and  ruder  manners  to  boon 


wh( 


Y' 


Chap.  %• 

it  is  the 

ated  that 

casion  in 

^e  admin- 

luucb,  \vc 

B  foiwaid, 

of  the  col- 
re  as  well 

}  darker  in 

li  in  ^'cw 

B  was,  for  a 

ase  some  of 

30  that  they 

mmmicants. 

ngs  were  re- 

g  and  show- 

ruption  from 

itncssing  the 

nan  Catholic 

Lions  in  their 

much  more 

I  indifferently 

in  Romanist 

otestant  con- 

Lrry  their  re- 

[ovired  race  on 

^igma  to  me. 

[able  objection 

\.dressed,  well- 

\m,  while  the 
of  their  own 

Inners  to  boon 


Chap.  x. 


FREE    MEN    OF   COLOUR. 


109 


■^'     ■% 


companionship.  I  have  no  doubt  that  if  I  remained 
here  for  some  years  I  should  imbibe  the  same  feelings, 
and  sympathise  with  what  now  appears  to  me  an  al- 
most incomprehensible  prejudice.  If  the  repugnance 
arose  from  any  physical  causes,  any  natural  antipathy 
of  race,  we  should.not  see  the  rich  Southerners  employ- 
ing black  slaves  to  wait  on  their  persons,  prepare  their 
food,  nurse  and  suckle  their  white  children,  and  Hve 
with  them  as  mistresses.  We  should  never  see  the 
black  lady's  maid  sitting  in  the  same  carriage  with  her 
mistress,  and  supporting  her  when  fatigued,  and  last, 
though  not  least,  we  should  not  meet  with  a  numerous 
mixed  breed  springing  up  every  where  from  the  union 
of  the  two  races. 

We  must  seek  then  for  other  causes  of  so  general 
and  powerful  a  nature  as  to  be  capable  of  influencing 
almost  equally  the  opinions  of  thirteen  millions  of  men. 
We  well  know  that  the  abolition  of  villeinage  and  serf- 
dom has  never  enabled  the  immediate  descendants  of 
freed-men,  however  rich,  talented,  and  individually 
meritorious,  to  intermarry  and  be  received  on  a  footing 
of  perfect  equality  with  the  best  families  of  their  coun- 
try, or  with  that  class  on  which  theu*  fathers  were  re- 
cently dependent.  If  in  Europe  there  had  been  some 
indelible  mark  of  ancestral  degradation,  some  livery, 
handed  down  indefinitely  from  one  generation  to  an- 
other, like  the  colour  of  the  African,  there  is  no  saying 
how  long  the  most  galling  disabilities  of  the  villein 
would  have  survived  the  total  abolition  by  law  of  per- 
sonal servitude.  But,  fortunately,  in  Western  Europe, 
the  slaves  belonged  to  the  same  race  as  their  masters, 
whereas,  in  the  United  States,  the  negro  cannot  throw 

15 


i^j 


S:  ! 

'^i  N 

0     :• 

i  i 

!   •: 

f       V 

r' 

'<    i 


\i 


NEGRO    RESERVATIONS. 


Chap.  x. 


off  the  livery  which  betrays  to  the  remotest  posterity 
the  low  condition  of  his  forefathers. 

There  are  Indian  reservations,  and  I  often  asked 
why  there  should  not  be  also  negro  reservations,  or 
large  territories  set  apart  for  free  blacks,  where  they 
might  form  independent  states  or  communities.  It 
would  be  proper  to  select  those  districts  where  the  cli- 
mate is  insalubrious  to  Europeans,  but  where  the  blacks 
are  perfectly  healthy.  I  was  assured  that  no  scheme 
could  be  more  Utopian — that  the  negroes,  if  left  to 
themselves,  would  abandon  the  cultivation  of  sugar, 
cotton,  and  all  the  crops  most  appropriate  to  such  lands. 
All  this  I  can  conceive ;  but  my  friends  went  on  to  ob- 
ject that  the  negroes  would  soon  sink  into  savage  life, 
and  make  marauding  expeditions  beyond  their  frontier. 
I  have  no  doubt  that  if  the  two  parties  were  left  with- 
out a  powerful  check,  some  attempt  would  soon  be 
made  at  territorial  encroachments,  but  it  is  easy  to 
foresee  which  party  would  be  the  formidable  aggressor. 


II      ! 


I 


Chap,  x- 
posterity 

jn  asked 
itions,  or 
tiere  they 
lities.     1^ 
re  the  cli- 
the  blacks 
no  scheme 
^  if  left  to 
1  of  sugar, 
such  lands, 
nt  on  to  ob- 
savage  life, 
heir  frontier, 
■re  left  with- 
3uld  soon  be 
it  is  easy  to 
ble  aggressor. 


Chap,  xi  . 


PHILADELPHIA. 


171 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Philadelphia. — Financial  Crisis. — Payment  of  State  Dividends  sus- 
pended.— General  Distress  and  private  Losses  of  the  Americans. 
— Debt  of  Pennsylvania. — Public  Works. — Direct  Taxes. — Z>e- 
ficient  Revenue. — Bad  Faith  and  Confiscation. — Irresponsible  Ex- 
ecutive.— Loan  refused  by  European  Capitalists  in  1843. — Good 
Faith  of  Congress  during  the  War  of  1812-14. — Effects  of  Uni- 
versal Suffrage. — Fraudulent  Voting. — Aliens.  —  Solvency  and 
good  Faith  of  the  Majority  of  the  Slates. — Confidence  of  Amer- 
ican Capitalists. — Reform  of  the  Electoral  Body. — General  Prog- 
ress of  Society,  and  Prospects  of  the  Republic. 

Philadelphia,  January  to  March,  1842. — Wish- 
ing to  borrow  some  books  at  a  circulating  library,  I 
presented  several  dollar  notes  as  a  deposit.  At  home 
there  might  have  been  a  ringing  of  coin  upon  the  coun- 
ter, to  ascertain  whether  it  was  true  or  counterfeit; 
here  the  shopwoman  referred  to  a  small  pamphlet,  re- 
edited  "  semi-monthly,"  called  a  "  Detector,"  and  con- 
taining an  interminable  list  of  banks  in  all  parts  of  the 
Union,  with  information  as  to  their  present  condition, 
whether  solvent  or  not,  and  whether  paying  in  specie, 
and  adding  a  description  of  "  spurious  notes."  After  a 
slight  hesitation,  the  perplexed  librarian  shook  her 
head,  and  declaring  her  belief  that  my  notes  were  as 
good  as  any  others,  said,  if  I  would  promise  to  take 
them  back  again  on  my  return,  and  pay  her  in  cash,  I 
might  have  the  volumes. 

It  often  happened  that  when  we  offered  to  buy  arti- 
cles of  small  value  in  shops,  or  fruit  in  the  market,  the 
venders  declined  to  have  any  dealings  with  us,  unless 


v 


^ 


i 


%■ 


1^3 


• 


I .  i 


I   ! 


172 


PINANCIAI     CliI«'TS. 


Chap.  xi. 


we  paid  in  specie.  They  remarked  that  their  change 
might  in  a  few  days  be  worth  more  than  our  paper. 
Many  farmers  and  gardeners  are  ceasing  to  bring  their 
produce  to  market,  although  the  crops  are  very  abun- 
dant, and  prices  are  rising  higher  and  higher,  as  if  the 
city  was  besieged.  My  American  friends,  anxious  that 
I  should  not  be  a  loser,  examined  all  my  dollar  notes, 
and  persuaded  me,  before  I  set  out  on  my  travels,  to 
convert  them  into  gold,  at  a  discount  of  eight  per  cent. 
In  less  than  four  weeks  after  this  transaction,  there 
was  a  general  return  to  cash  payments,  and  the  four 
banks  by  which  the  greater  part  of  my  paper  had  been 
issued,  all  failed. 

A  parallel  might  perhaps  be  found  for  a  crash  of  this 
kind  in  the  commercial  and  financial  history  of  Eng- 
land, or  at  least  in  some  of  her  colonies,  Australia,  for 
example,  where  the  unbounded  facility  afforded  to  a 
new  country  of  borrowing  the  superabundant  capital  of 
an  old  one,  has  caused  a  sudden  rise  in  the  value  of 
lands,  houses,  and  goods,  and  promoted  the  maddest 
speculations.  But  an  event  now  occurred  of  a  different 
and  far  more  serious  nature.  One  morning  we  were 
told  that  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania  had  come  in 
great  haste  from  Harrisburg,  in  consequence  of  the 
stoppage  of  one  of  the  banks  in  the  city,  in  which  were 
lodged  the  funds  intended  for  the  payment  of  dividends 
on  state  bonds,  due  in  a  few  days.  On  this  emergency 
he  endeavoured  to  persuade  other  banks  to  advance  the 
money,  but  in  vain  ;  such  was  the  general  alarm,  and 
feeling  of  insecurity.  The  consequent  necessity  of  a 
delay  of  payment  was  announced,  and  many  native 
holders  of  stock  expressed  to  me  their  fears,  that  al- 
though they  might  obtain  the  dividend  then  actually 


Chap.  xi. 

Lheir  change 
1  our  paper. 

0  bring  their 
B  very  abun- 
ler,  as  if  the 
anxious  that 
dollar  notes, 
ly  travels,  to 
ight  per  cent, 
laction,  there 
and  the  four 
per  had  been 

L  crash  of  this 
story  of  Eng- 
AustraUa,  for 
afforded  to  a 
iant  capital  of 
the  value  of 

1  the  maddest 
d  of  a  different 
ning  we  were 
,  had  come  in 
quence  of  the 
in  which  were 
snt  of  dividends 
this  emergency 

to  advance  the 
jral  alarm,  and 
,  necessity  of  a 
d  many  native 
r  fears,  that  al- 
1  then  actually 


Chap.  xi. 


'>EBT    OP    PENNSVI^VANIA. 


173 


resources  of  .he  S^J  ?  «t      "  ""*"'"''  '*'"  *« 
"nd  that,  if  i,  depended  on         ""'"'^'^' '"««  «»plei 

c'a^  generally,  to^npie  and      ^T"  "^  ""=  ""<'<"« 

^oned  by  .his  l„s.  bio  v  tllot^  ™"  ^'}''  '"^•■•«-  occa- 
previous  disarte,^    Men  al?    ^'  "'  "  '"'''  ^»  '"any 

«i-l  from  acivc  life,  aL,:l™'::t;r  '""'  '""  - 
to--,  or  after  military  servirlT  ,  ■'""''■  •"•  »'  "'« 
their  families  ,„  .he  wTL 7  'i  "'''^""'  «''"" 
1"=  left  des,i.ute;  ma,wwidi  =''".'''""■'''•''' "^ain. 
have  los.  their  all "',d  Jit  ""''  ''"^^  ^"-""en 
<='a-es  a«  deprived  rf  .Sj""""'"  °'  '"^  P°«-' 

no-ionprevaib'inEnXd  AatTh"^"-  ^"  '"•»""=°''' 
these  bankruptcies  isfrflllt.  ""^"y  "eated  by 
in  fact,  many'^.f  u  rZe«  .V  ''^  '"foreigners,  bu."^ 

and  «f  other  States,  had  inlr'       ''^""^y'™"''" 
rilies.    In  1844,  or  two  "™'''<' ™oney  in  these  seeu- 

adelphia,  the  Sa'vin^'Xf  T  7  f'  '"  '"'•"- 
petition  to  the  legish.u^at  hI     7  ^°*  ^"''"'"^  a 
ton  of  payment^f  Sifrl"!  *"•  "  "'^™1'- 
•hat  .heir  hank  then  I  eM  30oV,n  T  n'*  "  '""'  ^'"ted 
SOO,m,  b„.  was  obligi  !o"'eT,^'>  ^■"^  had  held 
1'tecia.ion,  in  order  topav   k      f^'""" "' "  ^^'"''e- 
eompelled  by  .he  dis.reL  „f  h  '''!""^"'''  '^ho  were 
their  deiwsits.  "'  "'o  ""o^  to  withdraw 

hew  byBri.ish  owners  ^.d^  """'^''f -^hieh  waa 
belonged  to  .hat  party^iie'^l,:!:  S?,"'^.  1  '"- 


15^ 


ahvays  indulged  the 


most 


n 


w^ 


11  :H 


mmm 


immmm 


H  >i 


I  J 


\V 


174 


DEBT    OF    PENXSYLVANIA. 


Chap.  zi. 


sanguine  hopes  of  the  prospects  of  the  American  re- 
pubHc,  and  estimated  most  highly  the  private  worth  of 
the  people  and  their  capacity  for  self-government,  they 
suflered  doubly,  being  disappointed  alike  in  their  pecu- 
niary speculations  and  their  political  views.  It  was 
natural,  therefore,  that  a  re-action  of  feeling  should 
embitter  their  minds,  and  incline  them  to  magnify  and 
exaggerate  the  iniquity  of  that  conduct  which  had  at 
once  impugned  the  soundness  of  their  judgment,  and 
inflicted  a  severe  injury  on  their  fortunes.  Hence,  not 
a  few  of  them,  confounding  together  the  different 
States,  have  represented  all  the  Americans  as  little 
better  than  swindlers,  who,  having  defrauded  Europe 
of  many  millions  sterUng,  were  enjoying  tranquilly  and 
with  impunity  the  fruits  of  their  knavery.  The  pub- 
lic works  executed  with  foreign  capital  are  supposed 
by  many  in  England  to  yield  a  large  profit  on  the 
outlay,  which  is  not  the  case  in  any  one  of  the  delin- 
quent States. 

The  loss  or  temporary  suspension  of  the  interest  even 
of  one  third  of  the  above-mentioned  debt,  in  a  country 
like  Pennsylvania,  where  there  is  a  small  amount  of 
capital  to  invest,  and  that  belonging  chiefly  to  persons 
incapable  of  exerting  themselves  to  make  money,  a 
country  where  property  is  so  much  divided,  and  where 
such  extensive  failures  had  preceded  this  crisis,  inflicts 
a  far  deeper  wound  on  the  happiness  of  the  community, 
than  the  defalcation  of  a  much  larger  sum  in  Great 
Britain  would  occasion. 

When  we  inquire  into  the  circumstances  which  have 
involved  the  Pennsylvanians  in  their  present  diflScul- 
ties,  we  shall  find  that,  disgraceful  as  their  conduct  has 
been,  their  iniquity  is  neither  so  great,  nor  the  proa- 


thc 


Chap.  xt. 

Vmerican  re- 
ate  worth  of 
rnnient,  they 
n  their  pecu- 
3WS.     It  was 
jeUng  should 
magnify  and 
which  had  at 
iidgment,  and 
.     Hence,  not 
the  different 
icans  as  httle 
luded  Europe 
tranquilly  and 
ly.     The  pub- 
are  supposed 
profit  on  the 
e  of  the  delin- 

le  interest  even 
•t,  in  a  country 
lall  amount  of 
liefly  to  persons 
nake  money,  a 
ded,  and  where 
lis  crisis,  inflicts 
the  community, 
r  sum  in  Great 

aces  which  have 
present  difficul- 
heir  conduct  has 
It,  nor  the  pros- 


Chap.  XI. 


PUBLIC    WORKS. 


175 


"'at  ".here's  sol  hi  V'  ot  1^7''''^'' '" -™« 
™ark,"  and  ,„  „|«erve  to  an  v  T  >,  "'"°  "^  Den- 
"'=  delinquency  of  le  Sm-T  <T' "  '"'"■  "^'"""a'"' 
«>»  People,  the  worse  o^^'     ""=■«=""  you  think  „f 

'heir  i...ti.mio„s.rHo  Jr,  ^"^  '"""  »'"«»'"  "' 
of  government,  can  such  even?''  "  '"'^^""''■"o  form 
and,  moreover,  in  a  ate  '"  '^"' '"  '™«=  of  peace, 
^^  of  IJ  per  LntC  ZX^y'  'hat  an  income' 
lars  required,' and  where  ,1,1     ,  '"''">»"  of  dol- 

not  usurious  nor  urn  ualn  a"'"™^'  ""  "'"  ^o"''^  "a^ 
jority  of  the  electorsboct  1  tr""r"'""  "'»  "- 
,    It  appear,  that  in iheyZmi'T'T""'"'' 
horrowed  a  large  sum  for  m,.;      '    ^"  P™n«y"vania 
»i.e  unposed  difectTxes  f^    ''^       "'"^"^  ^"^  '""^'o^ 
purpose  of  regular  ymvin^.r'"  ^''"'  '""^  *»  «P«- 
was  hoped,  t7omZ^^  ^    ""'^"'''  "fher  debt     I, 
t'«e  e.pLt  W  that  rrr  "'  """T  ^''*'  "-a',  't 
-uld  become  sufliLTp^/lS'  t  'T  "^""^ 
necessary  to  renew  the  tax     Th       u^  ""'''"•  "  "»- 
paying  until  the  year  im/^ '     ''''"^"'"™"  on 

thought  itself  iustifiedtSi„.r  ,"''  government 
unexpectedly  Lfched  Z^Zf^  '"'*"'  °"  heing 
nous  sources.  In  that  JJ  T  ^'^^  '""s  from  ,-a- 
a  charter  to  the  U.  S  ^'fc  „f  p''  "'*'"'  '"'"g^'ting 
dollars,  and  2,800,000  more  1  ^r'T"'"  ^'''^''^ 
'vhich  had  accumulatedTlhl !  "■  "'""■*  "'  "onies 
Government,  arising  om  of  ,t   TT^  '"'  ""=  Federal 

then  divided'among  t  .e  I  at     n"""";"  '""'"' »"" 

these  funds  would  last  fTtL  "  "'"^  """'lated  that 

•TuoW.P  ^"*  ^^^'^' and  that  the 


f   t 


.    OVER-TRADINa. 


Chap.  xi. 


public  works  would  by  that  time  yield  a  revenue  suffi- 
cient to  defray  the  interest  of  the  sum  laid  out  on  exe- 
cuting them. 

That  the  legislature  should  have  seized  the  first  op- 
portunity of  relieving  their  constituents  from  the  direct 
taxes  will  astonish  no  one  who  has  perused  the  printed 
paper  of  the  tax-assessor  in  Pennsylvania,  which  every 
one  is  required  to  fill  up.  The  necessity  of  ascertaining 
the  means  of  persons  possessed  of  small  property  renders 
the  questions  exceedingly  minute  and  inquisitorial. 
From  a  variely  of  others,  I  extract  the  following: — 
"  What  is  the  amount  of  your  monies  loaned  on  mort- 
gage, and  the  debts  due  to  you  by  solvent  debtors?" 
"  What  interest  do  they  pay  ?"  "  What  shares  do  you 
hold  in  any  bank  or  company  in  any  other  State?" 
"  How  many  pleasure  carriages  do  you  keep  ?"  "  How 
many  watches  do  you  own  ? — are  they  gold  or  silver  ?" 
and  so  forth. 

Soon  after  the  ill-judged  remission  of  this  tax,  a  great 
combination  of  circumstances  led  to  over-trading,  and 
the  most  extravagant  schemes  of  money-making.  The 
United  States'  Bank,  during  its  controversy  with  Pres- 
ident Jackson,  had  accumulated  a  large  amount  of 
specie,  and  lent  it  out  most  lavishly  and  imprudently ; 
and  when  it  obtained  its  new  charter  from  Pennsyl- 
vania, it  again  promoted  loans  of  all  kinds,  which  gave 
an  inordinate  stimulus  to  speculation.  Some  of  the 
great  London  banks,  at  the  same  time,  gave  credit  to 
a  prodigious  amount,  often  without  suflRcient  caution  ; 
and  when  they  were  compelled  to  withdraw  this  credit 
suddenly,  they  had  not  time  to  distinguish  which  of 
their  creditors  were  worthy  of  confidence.  A  great  fire 
in  New  York,  in  1835,  had  annihilated  properly  to  the 


i 


Ciur.  zi. 

renuo  suffi- 
out  on  exe- 

Lhe  first  op- 
II  tho  direct 
the  printed 
vhich  every 
isccrtuining 
erty  renders 
nquisitorial. 
bllowing : — 
led  on  inort- 
it  debtors?" 
lares  do  you 
Iher  State?" 
.p?"    "How 
d  or  silver  V 

3  tax,  a  great 
■trading,  and 
laking.    The 
sy  with  Pres- 
;  amount  of 
imprudently ; 
rem  Pennsyl- 
i,  which  gave 
Some  of  tlie 
•ave  credit  to 
ient  caution; 
aw  this  credit 
ish  which  of 
A  great  fire 
troperty  to  the 


Chap.  xi. 


NON-PAVMENT   oP   mviDENOS. 


M 


177 


o  ..COS,  ,.,„, ,  !,„.,«  tci"„t-,'"' "; ""  °^"-«"» 

Un,„„.  Tl,e„  ca,«,  i„  J8  ",f  "  '"""'  "'"""ff'.out  the 
of  ai.11,0,™,,^,  l.a.,/«  to  »u,,„  .  f""™'''''  «M.ent 
««,  ...0  «t^,p„,,  ..r.^:'^  lt's'1'71-''  '" 

It  is  necessary  to  reflect  nn  <i 

brought  about ;  but  no  «,„"  ^'^  "'^  "^""""yivania  was 
of  any  eharaot  r  p   te^ds  ' T""  ""'"  "'  '""'^"""' 

these  year,,  there  was  an  actual  '  •""''  '®'"'-    '" 

expenditure  of  the  State  fort ..  ""'''  '"  ""=  """"aCK 
and  education,  over  .he  rtei  /frr*';;  '''^"'-'"'eM 
e..ue,  except  the  pubhc  3  tT  '  ^'"■™^  »' "v- 
last  were  appropriated  (o  .1, „  P™eeds  of  these 

of.hedeb,,l:jr.h°  were'Tr™'  °' ""=  ■•"'«^«« 
In  what  manner  were  .w!  ""'"'''y '"^"ffleicnt. 
f"'^    Not  by  the  ir^l    r  '''^  deficits  provided 

bf-o-ina  and  addTlnn  °  ,"?  'u"*"''  "•"'  ^y 
The  party  in  power  Z^TZ^"  *»  P-^^e  debt^ 
laying  on  new  taxes  ■  anrl  .h  T  .      ""Popularity  of 
■neurred  by  them  a  'the  Um,  ^^'  ■''"'"'  "^  *^"edit 
bad  faith,  place,  i„  a    tro^n^t  thr  "T'  =•"  "' 
from  the  smaU  ^wer  here  c»1^t  .r  "'  ""^^ 

The  Govemo,  .^j^  ,^^  UoZ^h^^T'"^'"'- 
flciency  in  the  revenue  and  .1,  .  """'"'  '^  a  de- 

•«"  of  it,  and  appoim  ■col'j^:/,"  ""  "^'^^  '"e 
«»»posed  usually  „f  memS  ve"  vT  ""  "'""^ 

very  incompetent  as 


178 


NON-PAYMENT    OF    DIVIDENDS.         CilAf.  XI. 


1^1  '  : 


i.     :l 


inanciers.  It  is  for  thcin  to  coiiHJdcr  what  is  to  bo 
done ;  there  is  no  exj)crienced  otiicial  Minister  of  Fi- 
nance, no  chancellor  of  the  exchequer,  wiiosc  duty  it  is 
to  come  forward  with  a  budget,  and  declare,  Hke  the 
English  minister  in  1812: — "Here  is  an  income-tax, 
to  which  you  must  submit,  or  we  resign."  The  jeal- 
ousy on  the  part  of  the  people,  and  their  fears  of  the 
abuses  of  a  strong  executive,  have  induced  them  to 
circumscribe  its  powers  so  much,  that  they  have  vir- 
tually deprived  it  of  all  responsibility.  In  their  attempt 
to  avoid  one  evil,  they  have  fallen  into  another  as  great, 
if  not  greater. 

The  resources  of  the  country  were  so  paralyzed  in 
1842,  amidst  the  general  wreck,  and  crash  of  commer- 
cial houses  and  banks,  that  the  suspension  of  the  pay- 
ment of  one  or  two  State  dividelfds  had  become  un- 
avoidable ;  but  the  non-payment  even  of  a  fraction  of 
the  interest  in  1843-4,  during  a  period  of  reviving  pros- 
perity and  sound  currency,  reflects  no  small  disgrace 
on  the  people,  or  discredit  on  the  nature  of  their  in- 
stitutions. 

It  appears  that  in  the  year  1841,  before  the  regular 
payment  of  dividends  was  suspended,  a  new  property 
tax  was  imposed,  which  came  into  play  in  1842,  and 
yielded  to  the  State  486,000  dollars;  and  558,000 more 
in  1843,  and  an  additional  sum  in  1844,  of  755,000 
dollars.  These  returns  being  inadequate,  a  new  tax 
was  laid  on  in  1844,  with  more  stringent  regulations 
for  enforcing  its  collection,  and  it  is  now  expected  (De- 
cember, 1844)  that  the  public  creditor,  whose  arrears 
of  unpaid  dividends  have,  in  the  mean  time,  been 
funded,  will  receive  his  due.  But  how  many  bond- 
holders have  been  already  obliged  to  sell  out,  while 


I  to  bo 
of  Fi- 

Lity  H  w 
like  tlie 
)itie-tax, 
%c  jeal- 
:8  of  the 
them  to 
have  vir- 
ir  attempt 
r  as  great, 

falyzed  iu 
jf  commer- 
of  the  pay- 
3ecome  un- 
fraction  of 
viving  pvos- 
lall  disgrace 
of  tVieir  in- 

the  regular 
lew  property 
|n  1842,  and 
p58,000more 
L  of  755,000 
I  a  new  tax 
It  regulations 
Ixpected  (De- 
^hose  anears 
time,  been 
many  bond- 
Lu  out,  while 


Chap.  xi. 


CAUSES   OF    DEFALCATION. 


179 


*>    )'■' 


others  arc  dead  and  gone,  so  that  restitution  to  all  be- 
comes impossible;  and  thun,  to  a  certain  extent,  an 
irretrievable  act  of  confiscation  has  been  perpetrated  ! 

Let  us  now  cjnsider  how  far  these  evils  con  bo  at- 
tributed to  causes  of  so  general,  lasting,  and  deep-seated 
a  nature,  as  to  have  justified  the  monied  men  of  Eng- 
land and  the  Continent,  in  IS  12,  in  the  distrust  man- 
ifested by  them  of  the  good  faith  of  the  whole  Union. 
Such  a  want  of  confidence  was  displayed  when  the 
agent  of  the  Federal  Government  failed  to  obtain  in 
Europe  a  loan  of  a  few  millions  sterling  offered  on  very 
advantageous  terms. 

On  referring  to  the  lustory  of  the  United  States, 
during  the  present  century,  we  find  that  in  the  course 
of  the  war  of  1812 — 1814,  the  nation  had  incurred  a 
debt  about  equal  to  that  now  owing  (1844)  by  all  the 
delinquent  States.  A  proposal  was  twice  made  in  Con- 
gress to  discontinue  the  payment  of  dividends  to  the 
English  creditors,  on  the  ground  that  they  were  ene- 
mies. On  both  occasions,  the  proposal  was  rejected,  as 
dishonest,  and  with  marked  expressions  of  disapproba- 
tion ;  at  a  time  when  direct  taxes  levied  by  the  Federal 
Government  pressed  heavy  on  the  people.  The  debt 
went  on  increasing  after  the  close  of  the  war,  but  was 
at  length  entirely  paid  off  in  1835.  These  transactions 
raised  the  character  of  American  securities  throughout 
Europe ;  and  the  altered  tone  of  feeling  evinced  in 
1842  is  the  more  remarkable,  as  it  occurred  in  a  time 
of  profound  peace,  when  there  was  no  immediate  an- 
ticipation of  war,  and  when  it  was  well  known  that 
between  the  years  1812  and  1842,  the  wealth  and  ter- 
ritory of  the  confederacy  had  increased  enormously,  and 
the  population  more  than  doubled.     In  fact,  the  ad- 


mi 


(^  ■ 


i 


180 


UNIVERSAL    SUFFRAGE. 


Chap,  zl 


vance  in  the  number  of  the  inhabitants  in  this  short 
interval  was  from  eight  to  eighteen  miUions ;  the  ex- 
cess alone  amounting  to  more  than  the  population  of 
all  England  at  the  commencement  of  the  present 
century. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  course  of  events  during 
the  thirty  years  above  alluded  to  has  afforded  grounds 
of  anxiety  to  those  who  admire  republican  institutions 
and  to  every  well-wisher  of  the  prosperity  of  the  Union. 
They  who  would  make  a  permanent  investment  of 
money  in  U.  S  stock  must  anticipate  the  possibility  of 
war,  and  of  a  consequent  reduction  of  revenue  from  the 
customs.  If  it  then  became  necessary  to  lay  on  direct 
taxes,  we  have  to  consider,  whether  a  majority  of  all 
the  citizens  would  be  Ukely  to  evince  as  much  repug- 
nance to  pay  their  dividends  punctually  to  foreign  and 
domestic  creditors  as  the  Pennsylvanians  and  Mary- 
landers  have  recently  shown.  If  it  has  required  several 
years  to  rouse  the  electors  of  these  ancient  States  to  a 
sense  of  their  duty  and  honour,  would  the  consciences 
of  the  new  settlers  in  ruder  and  less  advanced  com- 
munities, constituting  a  large  portion  of  the  Union,  be 
more  sensitive  ? 

As  politicians,  no  people  are  so  prone  to  give  way  to 
groimdless  fears  and  despondency  respecting  the  pros- 
pects of  affairs  in  America  as  the  English,  partly  be- 
cause they  know  little  of  the  condition  of  society  there, 
and  partly  from  their  own  well-founded  conviction,  that 
a  near  approach  to  universal  suffrage  at  home  would 
lead  to  anarchy  and  insecurity  of  property.  To  divide 
the  land  equally  among  all,  to  make  an  "equitable 
adjustment"  of  the  national  debt,  or,  in  other  words,  to 
repudiate,  are  propositions  gravely  discussed  at  Chartist 


ClIAF.  XL 

in  this  short 
ons;  the  ex- 
population  of 
the  present 

events  during 
»rded  grounds 
n  institutions 
of  the  Union, 
avestment  of 

possibiUty  of 
enuefrom  the 

lay  on  direct 
najority  of  all 

much  repug- 
to  foreign  and 
as  and  Mary- 
jquired  several 
int  Stales  to  a 
le  consciences 
dvanced  com- 

the  Union,  be 

to  give  way  to 
;ting  the  pros- 
lish,  partly  be- 
if  society  there, 
conviction,  that 
,t  home  would 
ty.  To  divide 
an  "equitable 
other  words,  to 
ssed  at  Chartist 


Chap.  xi. 


UNIVERSAL    SVfFiiAUE. 


181 


^    .  isi 

meoungs,  and  even  emborJ.Vri  • 

petitions  .0  parlia.nenT'^^l'e  127"""''  "'"'^ 
democratic  party  in  the  It  «       T?   '^^  '"''"'  "^  "'e 
the  opinion,  that  in  Enind'  71      ^u^''^^  "^"t  to 
actual  want,  .vl,ere"t^^''T. ,'''"'  ^  *"""* 
1.300,000  persons,  receive  2    k    ."'"  W'ttion,  or 
•nation  haa  made  sltrXr^   '"*'^'  '''"''<'  ''>- 
»d  wJ.ere  there  is  noon  feUnTS  T"^  '""  P°°'' 
valve  for  t|,e  escape  of  Z     i    * .^f  West,  no  safety. 
would  be  mostdarerl      ""^"'"''"''  '"habitants.  It 

"'th  the  ri,ht  of  :„r;  r:Ti  ""^  ^''"■'  "^'^ 

the  experiment  a  safe  one  n^  ""^  ""'y  think 

--eeded.     B„t  r^taZv  Z  I"  ""'"«■  "-'  "  '-s 
ever  inexpedient  and  useless  tf.!  "'''"T  P^''^'  ^^v- 
'»te  the  question,  agree  wilh/h^  ™^  """''  "  <"  =>?'- 
politicians  in  coisid  rin!   hat  ITT^  "' ^""P^^" 
tenorated  the  character  5  .h     ,    ^  '°'™'ed  and  de- 

It  i^  undeniable  tll;,e'  T"^  ''"'y- 
««ive  population  has  mulMi.H'lf'^T*  '*'*  the 
and  .tiU  more  the  influ"  o  Sf/n  ""^'"'"' "'"  Uni°°, 
had  a  tendency  to  ca,l  thel^  """  """^  '^'^"e.  has 
a  new  colony,  Vather  t^a  aloM  r."?'^^  '"  '"»"""« 
nation.    Not  only  manv  „       i  "■  '""g-e^tablished 

but  even  some  of  the  „Uon7  ^T"""^  ^"^  S""-, 
Pennsylvania,  coXt^Z  TV"^  "'  ^'''  ^ort  and 

they  are  full  rfXentl;r.™°'™P'«'  ''»«'  that 
P^'<-  of  America,  17171        ''^™''"°''  ''™"«'her 
speaking  different' la4„:'r~-   f-"   Europe, 
prejudices,  and  distmbinll'he  1     .°?^™hing  foreign 
parties,  founded  on  brolTan  !,  T        "^  "^  "^"™ 
policy.     1  have  already  remlrT'  ™*'  °'  home 
em  frontier  of  the  slVof  NtV'tS""  *"  «"■*- 
the  native  forest  yielding  as  ftlTb      '"'■  '''•^'  '  ^=»^ 

"  ayast  to  the  axe  of  the  new 


I 


(I ' 


182 


PENNSYLVANIAN   GERMANS. 


) 


Chaf.  XI. 


settler,  as  if  we  had  penetrated  to  the  Far  West,  or  the 
back  woods  of  Canada.  When  we  turn  to  her  north- 
ern confines,  we  learn  from  the  Reports  of  the  Geolog- 
ical Surveyors  employed  by  government  in  1837,  and 
subsequent  years,  that  in  Essex  County  and  elsewhere 
they  had  recourse  to  Indian  guides  in  a  pathless  wil- 
derness, encountered  panthers  and  moose-deer,  found 
the  beaver  still  lingering  in  some  streams,  saw  lakes 
before  undescribed,  and  measured  the  height  of  moun- 
tains for  the  first  time.  During  my  short  sojourn  in 
the  metropolis  of  that  State,  I  witnessed,  among  other 
illustrations  of  the  heterogeneous  composition  of  its 
people,  a  grand  Repeal  demonstration,  an  endless  pro- 
cession of  Irish  parading  the  streets,  with  portraits  of 
O'Connell  emblazoned  on  their  banners,  and  various 
mottoes,  implying  that  their  thoughts  were  occupied 
with  party  questions  of  British,  not  of  American  pol- 
itics. A  large  number  of  these  aUens  have,  contrary  to 
old  usage,  been  of  late  years  invested  with  electoral 
rights ;  and  candidates  for  places  in  the  magistracy,  or 
the  legislature,  are  degraded  by  paying  court  to  their 
sympathies  and  ignorant  prejudices.  This  temptation 
is  too  strong  to  be  resisted  ;  for,  small  as  may  be  their 
numbers  when  compared  with  the  native  voters,  they 
often  turn  the  scale  in  an  election  where  the  great  con- 
stitutfonal  parties  are  veiy  nearly  balanced. 

In  addition  to  some  of  these  evils,  Pennsylvania 
labours  under  the  disadvantage  of  being  jointly  occu- 
pied by  two  races,  those  of  British,  and  those  of  Ger- 
man extraction.  The  latter  are  spoken  of  by  the 
Anglo-Americans  as  the  Boeotians  of  the  land.  They 
appeared  to  me  industrious  and  saving,  very  averse  to 
speculation,  but  certainly  wanting  in  that  habit  of 


ha\ 


Chap.  xi. 

Vest,  or  the 
I  her  north- 
the  Geolog- 
i  1837,  and 
i  elsewhere 
athless  wil- 
deer,  found 
3,  saw  lakes 
It  of  moun- 
t  sojourn  in 
,mong  other 
lition  of  its 
endless  pro- 
portraits  of 
and  various 
ere  occupied 
nerican  pol- 
!,  contrary  to 
ith  electoral 
lagistracy,  or 
Durt  to  their 
is  temptation 
nay  be  their 
;  voters,  they 
he  great  con- 
d. 

Pennsylvania 
jointly  occu- 
those  of  Ger- 
in  of  by  the 
land.  They 
rery  averse  to 
hat  habit  of 


Chap.  xi. 


-ENT-STLVANI^   OERM^K,. 


183 


Mentifying  themselves  with  ,1 

■»»',  which  can  al„:   ™  ,  ';1:T  "'  "-"^  govern. 

fesentative  system  a  H,.5  "  *'=""'^  "nfe  a  rei>. 

P'-ojects  which  had  failed  "'V*'  "'"^  ^'"m.rcial 
""'ike  the  Engm,  wS  dehl  "  '  ''"""'^'^  ">«. 
^'Og  on  warsfthe;  «tTat  ea  ,""■' .'"™"«'  ''^  »^- 
•^P  from  their  expenditu'l'^,^' ™J"»S  =ome  advan- 

o-«take„--,hatsucLte"nld  ^^■r"'^'''  ■""  '  ™« 

"on  were  I>ositively  i„Ss  1   T'".?™^''"^  oflocomo- 

'»  'he  West,  and  ,^ev  X  a'''    """"'"^  ""«'•«»'« 

population  from  fiLg  up     Po  ""h  '^  '""^  "  "'<^'^" 

had  not  risen  i„  value  a,  I        "  '■'"''™'  """fends 

Theyprotestedthatth  y  hadT,r'''  ""  ""'"  "»»- 
•»"»-ays  and  canals;  a^d  thaf  7'^'  ■*""  "PPo^^d  <- 
adopted,  there  was  s„"e  ,o  Z  T"^  "'"''"''  «»« 

eanal  or  railway  made  T„  1      ^"°*"  ""necessary 
'"  'heir  legislature.     Th"  r"""'""  "^  "  '"^-^oUing" 
each  section  of  the  count^yTuTd""",  ™'  "^^  ^"y-  "^ 
•"oney,  if  they  could  obtefn  T       ""'y  ^on^'W  to  vote 
««".  *ould  be  laid  out  irtheL''"'T  "■"'  ^»  "l-a' 
end  some  new  and  unclued  f"      ?       *''  ""-^  '"*« 
™n'ed.    This  kind  of  Si":  f ""»'  had  to  be  in- 
foUnii:  in  the  back  J,J°     ^  "'"^  ""Pa'e  to  log. 
-ed  inhabitant:!^^;''-''  "•"  'hinly-sci- 
™gle  day  for  ,he  nev^^m'r  re      "''  '  '"^"'"'»  '"  « 
«ome  corresponding  serricT  '  T'™'^'       "'"■''  """■ 
numbers  is  required.  '   '"''"nover  the  union  of 

From  all  I  could  lea™  r  e<.  ■    . 
-  soon  as  these  Giran'wlr""^''  ""'*ve.  that 
■•eally  owed  the  money  thev  »,,""'""'='"'  "'»'  «hey 

however,  a  multitudT  IJlZ"'"  '^r  "•    There  are! 
;^- recently  ^„.4t^-Pe..m^,,^,^,^ 


It 


I  I 


181 


UNIVERSAL   SUFFRAGE. 


Ciur.  XI. 


tions  by  shortening  the  term  of  years  required  for  natu- 
ralization. It  is  also  notorious  that,  owing  to  the  neg- 
lect of  registration,  many  aliens  vote  fraudulently,  and 
others  several  times  over  at  the  same  poll,  in  various 
disguises. 

To  those  English  politicians  who  are  not  accustomed 
to  look  with  favouring  eyes  on  democratic  institutions 
in  general,  the  task  of  reforming  such  abuses  appears 
hopeless.  By  what  eloquence,  they  ask,  can  we  per- 
suade an  ignorant  multitude  to  abdicate  power,  if  we 
have  once  taken  the  false  step  of  conferring  sovereignty 
upon  them?  At  every  election  they  must  become 
more  and  more  demoraUzed.  It  is  proverbially  difficult 
for  truth  to  reach  the  ears  of  kings,  and  what  matters 
it  whether  the  sovereign  consist  of  one  or  of  many  in- 
dividuals? The  flattery  of  demagogues  is  not  less 
gross  and  servile  than  that  of  courtiers  in  the  palaces 
of  princes.  The  candidates  for  popular  favour,  when 
appealing  to  the  passions  of  tlie  vulgar,  their  vanity, 
pride,  and  national  jealousy,  never  administer  their 
honied  drugs  in  homoeopathic  doses.  By  what  arts  or 
powers  of  oratory  can  we  hope  to  persuade  the  least 
educated  portion  of  the  community,  when  they  have 
once  obtained  by  their  numbers  a  preponderating  in- 
fluence, that  they  ought  to  be  disfranchised  ? — that  the 
more  wealthy  citizens,  who  have  leisure  for  study  and 
reflection,  will  shrink  from  the  ordeal  of  contested  elec- 
tions, if  they  must  defer  to  vulgar  prejudices,  and  coarser 
feelings ; — in  a  word,  that  some  must  be  content  to 
break  stones  on  the  road  and  dig  canals,  instead  of 
choosing  lawgivers,  and  instructing  them  how  to  vote? 

Nothing  is  more  easy  than  to  draw  so  discouraging 
a  picture  of  the  dangers  of  universal  suflfrage,  that  we 


Chap.  xi. 

1  for  natu- 

tothe  neg- 

ently,  and 

in  various 

Lcciistomed 
institutions 
es  appears 
in  we  per- 
)wer,  if  we 
sovereignty 
ist  become 
illy  difficult 
lat  matters 
f  many  in- 
is  not  less 
the  palaces 
vour,  when 
^eir  vanity, 
lister  their 
rhat  arts  or 
e  the  least 
they  have 
lerating  in- 
? — that  the 
r  study  and 
itested  elec- 
and  coarser 
!  content  to 
,  instead  of 
low  to  vote? 
liscouraging 
Lge,  that  we 


Chap.  xi. 


AMERICAN   CAPITALISTS. 


185 


nil  °^ 

of  recent  eve„^  and  observe  wlat  "  „      '""'"'  ™«' 

in  a  very  different  and  ftrtt  .''T'.T  "'""  ""■'^^ 
fct  place,  touching  lancilTlt"''"'  ''^'"-  '»  'he 
to  know  that,  when  tl^Tre^   71'"''  "  '^  »alisfaetory 

italists  came  forwardwM  o„f  ^  ?"'  •""'  '^'"""""^  <=ap- 
">e  money  on  the  .^^  whi  h  "hth""'  "'"  "'" 
new  stock  rose  at  once  Ihlt  ™ '''■'''"•"'•   The 

come  saleable  i„  Euron^  a,^  '^'l  ""''  ''"^  ^'nce  be- 
The  Americans  ^yT.C  JTT  "'  ^"P^'-nt. 
the  years  1843  and  7844  'f7>';  ^'F  1""'''"'^'  « 
tttcfcy,  Tennessee  ami  t™p  "^"f  "' f*'"°'  «»- 
there  been  more  cLlal  Jel         ''^"''"''' '  ■■"«'  ''ad 

S-,  'heir  securities tC'aT,!";,T''""'"  '"  'h«  U- 
toa  greater  extent  ^""'"'■""hangedhands 

This  confidence  is  not  h-  j 
pure  patriotism,  but  on  co.wT,l  ?  -""^  1"""^'"^  "f 
«'ge  that  all  bJt  nine  ouTof T'™  ""''  "^  '^'««''- 
Temtories  are  either  free  .llw'^-f''  «'"'-  and 
to  their  engagements.  Tit  "nt  S,:''  T  !^"  '""" 
■"ally  disowned  or  repudiild  ,  '''"""''  '""'  "''•- 

amounting  to  about  oTe  !,  ,         '"'■"™  "^  her  debt. 
She  dcK-s^not  tZr,  ™"'™  ''"«"»'.  -  Mississippi.' 

Pa'-'ofit,  but  has  tL  er„l':r:;^  ""=  "»->■'  °'  a 

non-payment,  that  her  T  ,  ^''  "^  «'"'"">  for 

and  defrauded  hr  MicS  "f"""^"  'h«>  Powers, 
held  language  s  mewHt  Z,"' ?'''°'  "'"'  '''°'*'  have 
the  other  States  Tlrl^     ""«'"'  repudiation ;  but 

«»"»  of  them  a  e  ex    uL  tl!  '"T'"''  *"  l"^'  »'«' 
exciting  themselves  i„  earnest  to 


f 


■'      (| 


^    i 


186 


SUFFRAGE   IN    NEW-ENGLAND. 


Chap.  zi. 


accomplish  the  object.  Upon  the  whole,  the  interest 
of  nearly  half  the  money  borrowed  has  been  regularly 
paid ;  and  when  we  recollect  that  no  small  part  of  it 
was  lent  to  new  and  poor  States  or  Territories,  where 
society  is  still  in  a  rude,  half-formed,  and  migratory 
condition,  and  that  the  money  lent  rashly  and  incau- 
tiously was  spent,  as  might  have  been  expected,  im- 
providently,  we  must  view  their  delinquency  with  some 
indulgence,  and  assign  a  share,  at  least,  of  the  blame 
to  the  lender. 

The  state  of  Ohio  has  always  punctually  discharged 
the  interest  of  her  debt  by  direct  taxes  imposed  for  that 
special  purpose,  although  there  has  been  a  deficit  from 
the  beginning  on  the  proceeds  of  her  public  works.  She 
is  of  recent  origin,  and  her  growth  has  been  more  rank 
and  luxuriant  than  that  of  any  other  State  of  the 
Union.  An  influx  of  illiterate  Irish,  Welsh,  and  West- 
phalian  settlers,  has  tended  to  lower  the  educational 
qualifications  of  her  electors,  considered  as  a  whole ; 
but  she  came  of  a  good  New-England  stock,  which, 
like  the  philosopher's  stone,  has  converted  much  of  her 
baser  metal  into  gold. 

!  Any  foreigner  who  has  hastily  embraced  the  notion 
that  a  suflfrage  virtually  universal  must  be  incompati- 
ble in  the  U.  S.  with  order,  obedience  to  the  laws, 
security  of  property,  a  high  degree  of  civilization,  and 
the  most  unimpeachable  public  credit,  has  only  to 
make  himself  acquainted  with  the  present  condition  of 
the  New-England  States,  especially  Massachusetts,  and 
he  will  feel  satisfied  that  the  charge  may  be  refuted. 
It  is  a  wholly  different  question  whether  so  democratic 
a  constitution  is  equally  fitted  for  the  exigencies  of 
many  other  parts  of  the  Union,  where  the  mass  of  the 


Chap.  zi. 

the  interest 
!n  regularly 
U  part  of  it 
ories,  where 
i  migratory 
r  and  incau- 
cpecled,  im- 
y  with  some 
f  the  blame 

f  discharged 
osed  for  that 
deficit  from 
works.  She 
(1  more  rank 
Jtate  of  the 
1,  and  West- 
educational 
as  a  whole ; 
tock,  which, 
much  of  her 

d  the  notion 
►e  incompati- 
Lo  the  laws, 
lization,  and 
lias  only  to 
condition  of 
^husetts,  and 
f  be  refuted. 

0  democratic 
xigencies  of 

1  mass  of  the 


Chap,  xi. 


THE    PROGRESS    OP   SOCIETY. 


187 


people  are  less  advancer!  in  . 
^here  the  force  ^pubt  1'^^^^'^'^  ^"^  -^^^th, 
checked,  and  the  free  ccunmn  "  '"^  ^^"^^^^^^  ^^ 
Peded  b,  distinctness  0":::;:^^?"  °'  '""^'^^  "»" 
Althouffh  the  nniw;  '^"^o^^^ns-uage. 

States  aial  tnS  r 'olT'''"''''"^  "'  "'   --ral 
considen^ble  diversity  ^,11"",'  ""f"''  ''"""  "^^ 

are  no.  the  same  in  auLr  1 1  T'  ""''  ^'^'^^ 
or  powers  of  tiie  ExIouUve  ■vT'^'"  "'  "PP"'"'™™. 
a  nearer  approach  to  uniformitv  m!"  """"''  '"'""■'"•' 
ent  with  the  very  diflerent  S  '"""  ""^  ^  '=°»-^'- 
»ent  and  mental  cultivation  i^?.  T""^  "'''•=»"=«- 
ent  States  have  attained  "  '^"""  '""'!«'«'- 

«al:m'::r;:t;:'::;f- 1''-  "-<-'  "«=  '-di„, 

and  their  remedt  art  V:  .'^"ti  "f"  ""•"  '"^  ^'^ 
In  many  of  the  nevvspap^.ra„d  !  .f"'"  '"*''^^*°»- 
quarterly  journals  of  both  Jawt  ''^  """"%  a-d 

speeches  a.  elections   weTrr  ?"''"''"""'■- ^^ 
years,  the  conduct  of  VeBudt^f'.         I  ""  '"''  "'«« 
unsparingly  condemned     tT^  "'  *«""""«  S^'es 
are  made  to  the  sense  of  just  fee  'Z\  """"''  "PP""'^ 
Lgious  feelings  or  nationar^ir      ?.""""■' '""'<= '«" 
readers ;  they  also  teU  them  Zt  it  i     ^■'  """"''^  "' 
pay,  and  that,  if  ,i,ey  J„n„t     '      "'T  '""=«''  '" 
motives  they  should  rLember  .  L""h  '  '^  ''''''"' 
best  pohcy"    The  frequency  and  .         """"'^  '^  "'« 
exhortations  suflicie„t?y  prTve  tl         ^"  "'  *^^'' 
writers  and  orators  that  a  refnnV      ™"™"on  of  the 


'!    i^ 


188 


PROSPECTS   OP   THE    REPUBLIC.        Chap.  zi. 


I'  ! 


fifteen  years,  have  not  yet  been  carried  far  enough.  A 
niorc  strict  registration  of  the  electors  for  the  sake  of 
putting  an  end  to  fraudulent  voting,  and  the  exclusion 
of  foreigners  from  the  electoral  body,  by  lengthening 
the  term  of  naturalization,  are  measures  warmly  in- 
sisted upon  by  the  party  opposed  to  the  extremes  of 
domocracy — a  party  which,  so  late  as  the  year  1840, 
obtained  a  majority  in  a  presidential  election,  when  two 
millions  and  a  half  of  persons  gave  their  votes.  San- 
guine hopes  are  entertained  that  the  most  respectable 
members  of  the  democratic  party  will  also  join  in  effect- 
ing reforms  in  the  electoral  system  so  obviously  desira- 
ble. It  is  not  simply  the  fair  fame  and  happiness  of 
eighteen  millions  of  souls  which  are  at  stake  ;  for  du- 
ling  the  lifetime  of  thousands  now  taking  part  in  pub- 
lic aflairs,  or  before  the  close  of  the  present  century, 
the  population  of  the  U.  S.  will  probably  amount,  even 
on  a  moderate  estimate,  to  no  less  than  eighty  mil- 
lions.* 

•  Tucker's  Progrese  of  the  U.  S.,  p.  IOC. 


ii' 


Chap.  xi. 

tllOUgh.  A 
le  sake  of 
e  exclusion 
mgthening 
varmly  in- 
jctremes  of 
year  1840, 
I,  when  two 
3tes.  San- 
respectable 
in  in  effect- 
usly  desira- 
ippiness  of 
ke ;  for  du- 
)art  in  pub- 
snt  century, 
lount,  even 
eighty  mil- 


CtlAP, 


XU. 


NEW    YORK. 


189 


CHAPTER  XIL 

^'^  York  City  ^Oeol 

'^^-d.-.nesiaence  inNT^ZTZ  "^  ^'^"'''^  ^^^cks  in  Lo„^ 
intercourse  of  distant    ^,  ."^-^'"^^onSocietuonr.^ 

»«>  the  left  bank  of  the  aT      /""'*'  "^  «'<=  'he  cli/fi 

'een  of  eerpe„,i„e,  a  rSSTwhil    ""  "^"'  <=«ffi  »« 

Sweden.  All  these  fon^at^n^  ^^  "^  ^""^V  and 
of  Staten  Island,  co„e^^n"'  e^!,'  ''f  «'  ">»  «/»,  e 
■•"cte,  of  the  same  order  ^  "'°*'^  »^*  European 

">•>?  Island  is  about  ^•v^     ■, 
town  of  B,<„  on    ts^es t"  »  '»»S"'.  and  the 

«>.mderedasas„LurbrfCYl'"r"^'  "^^  be 
«  every  where  covered  with  a„  ^^^  ^"^  ^^'^<i 

or  diluvium,  and  is  Zl       ""'™o'"  mass  of  drift 
United  States,  whereltwT    """'""  <»»'  ""the 
numbers.    Excavations  rriX  T^  '"^'' '"  ^'■- 
Yard  at  Brooklyn  have  eZ^j  ,r.    ,""  "■»  ^avy 
to  the  depth  of  thirty  feeHh.^"  '"'"''''"•  formation 
«en  cotjsisting  of  red  clay  akd  llr""  u'""'°"  "'ere 
trap  and  sandstone,  is  evidemi  '^   ,' '""'  ■«"'*«  of 

viaently  the  detritus  of  the  New 


190 


STllATIPIKD    DRIFT. 


Chap.  xii. 


m 


>  .1 


i 


Red  Sandstone  formation  of  New  Jersey.  This  mass, 
in  the  sections  where  I  observed  it,  was  about  eighteen 
feet  thick,  and  rudely  stratified.  Above  it  lay  an  un- 
stratified  grey  loam,  partly  of  coarse  and  partly  of  fine 
materials,  with  boulders  and  angular  blocks  of  gneiss, 
syenitic  greenstone,  and  other  crystalline  rocks,  dis- 
persed at  random  through  the  loamy  base,  the  whole 
being  covered  with  loam  eight  feet  thick.  One  an- 
gular block  of  gneiss,  which  I  measured,  was  thirteen 
feet  long,  by  nine  in  breadth,  and  five  feet  high,  but 
masses  still  larger  have  been  met  with,  and  broken  up 
by  gunpowder.  Mr.  Redfield,  who  accompanied  me 
to  Brooklyn,  suggested  that  the  inferior  red  drift  may 
have  been  accumulated  first  when  the  red  sandstone  of 
the  neighbouring  country  was  denuded,  and  that  after- 
wards, when  the  land  was  submerged  to  a  greater  depth, 
and  when  the  gneiss  and  hypogene  mountains  of  the 
highlands  alone  protruded  above  the  waters,  the  upper 
drift  with  its  erratics  may  have  been  thrown  down.  I 
am  well  disposed  to  adopt  this  view,  because  it  coin- 
cides with  conclusions  to  which  I  was  led  by  indepen- 
dent evidence,  after  examining  the  districts  around 
Lakes  Erie  and  Ontario,  viz.  that  the  drift  was  de- 
posited during  the  successive  submergence  of  a  region 
which  had  been  previously  elevated  and  denuded,  and 
which  had  already  acquired  its  present  leading  geo- 
graphical features  and  superficial  configuration. 

At  South  Brooklyn,  I  saw  a  fine  example  of  strati- 
fied drift,  consisting  of  beds  of  clay,  sand,  and  gravel, 
which  were  contorted  and  folded  as  if  by  violent  lateral 
pressure,  while  beds  below  of  similar  composition,  and 
equally  flexible,  remained  horizontal.  These  appear- 
ances, which  exactly  agree  with  those  seen  in  the  drift 


Ctur.  xii. 

riiis  mass, 
It  eighteen 
lay  an  un- 
rtly  of  fine 
i  of  gneiss, 
rocks,  dis- 
,  the  whole 
One  an- 
as thirteen 
t  high,  but 
broken  up 
ipanied  me 
i  drift  may 
mdstone  of 
I  that  after- 
3ater  depth, 
ains  of  the 
;,  the  upper 
n  down.    I 
jse  it  coin- 
by  indepen- 
icts  around 
ift  was  de- 
of  a  region 
snuded,  and 
wading  geo- 
tion. 

le  of  strati- 
and  gravel, 
alent  lateral 
losition,  and 
lese  appear- 
in  the  drift 


ClMP.  XII  ,  „ 

Of  Scotland  or  .1       Ar  "1 

"ground,  aict„o„n  to  „,„,,/;""•''  "''w  tlicy  rim 
"'  s  iinfflo  n„,i         ■      '^" '"-'lore  t  loin  I-.,.„ 

■nfer,orpo„i„„,„,,,,    »<^^'  >    ...  .1.0  .sea,wl,i,o  tlij 
Mr.  Matlior,  i,,  .„•,  p  "  '"'"'•"  "...novod. 

I;o>.?bla„d,wl.id,,a.V.lrl      ''°"'''"  '■"'■"••■'.•on  on 

'-""com    :Wt  .'h^"^"^'™-''  ""I  ^ytite   T"""' 
atu]   ,\v       ,     ^  ^"®  Sound  from        -^^""^^  as  may 

^"^^    nimediately  to  the  nl li        ^""'^^  «^  ^^ode  1/ 

Ha  e7:Lr"-    «'■•"  fartht  «.r"  "™"^''  '^'"■'h 
^ven,  theyconsstofrprl«o    i         '  ^'  opposite  New 

«"  end,  adjoining,  tho  o/.v  „f\?    '""'y'  »'  'ho  west 

l«»"»e,  rod  sandftono  2         "^  ^''"''  «-  findTer 

^■"«r«:lcs,  which  havflrr  ^"^"''^  ""-icZ 

.m.ned,a,ely  to  .ho  no'u,    'IV"""  *«  district  lyi^l 

•^avollod  fragments  wiil  tlZ       '««"b...ion  of  thf 

"nediately  opposite,  as  if 
*  Report  for  1837,  p.  88. 


I 


41 


41 


192 


NEW    YORK. 


ClUP.  XII 


they  hail  cioMfitoil  the  ^:ieut  viillcy  of  «S\vit/<M'luii(l,  more 
than  filVy  iniluM  hioad,  in  a  (liroctiun  at  n<^ht  an^flos  to 
kn  length.  The  Suund,  which  Hcparates  Long  Js^lanil 
from  the  main  land,  in  from  livo  to  twunty-fivu  miles 
broad.  The  frajifments  have  iloubtless  been  trans- 
ported by  ice  ;  but  we  must  HU|)p<Me  them  to  have  been 
iloatcd  by  ice-isjandi^  in  the  sea,  as  there  arc  no  high 
mountains  in  this  part  of  North  America  from  which 
glaciers  can  have  descended  after  the  contiitent  had 
nc(|uired  nearly  its  present  shape  and  altitude. 

We  spent  several  weeks  at  New  York,  and  soon 
found  ourselves  at  home  in  the  society  of  persons  to 
some  of  whom  we  had  letters  of  intrtxluction  from  near 
relatives  in  England,  and  others  whom  we  had  met  at 
distant  places  in  the  course  of  our  tour.  So  many 
American  citizens  migrate  from  north  to  south  for  the 
sake  of  mild  winters,  or  attentlance  on  Congress,  or  the 
supreme  courts  of  law  at  Washington,  or  congregate 
in  largo  watering  places  during  the  summer,  or  have 
children  or  brothers  settled  in  the  Far  West ;  every- 
where there  is  so  much  intercourse,  personal  or  episto- 
lary, between  scientific  and  literary  men  in  remote 
states,  who  have  often  received  their  university  educa- 
tion far  from  home,  that  in  each  new  city  where  we 
sojourn  our  American  friends  and  acquaintances  seem 
to  know  something  of  each  other,  and  to  belong  to  the 
same  set  in  society.  The  territorial  extent  and  politi- 
cal independence  of  the  different  States  of  the  Union 
remind  the  traveller  rather  of  the  distinct  nations  of 
Europe  than  of  the  difFerent  counties  of  a  single  king- 
dom like  England ;  but  the  population  has  spread  so 
fast  from  certain  centres,  especially  from  New  England, 
and  the  facilities  of  communication  by  railway  and 


Chap,  xii 

I'luiul,  nioro 
it  angles  to 
^ong  Jtilaiul 
y-(ivu  miles 
K'cii  trans- 
j  have  been 
re  no  hif^^h 
IVoiii  which 
itiiicnt  had 
Jc. 

f,  and  soon 
f  pcraona  to 
ri  IVoin  near 

had  met  at 

So  niany 

outh  for  the 

grcHs,  or  the 

congregate 
ler,  or  have 
rctit ;  every- 
il  or  episto- 

in  remote 
srsity  educa- 
^  where  we 
tances  seem 
elong  to  tlie 
t  and  poHti- 
f  the  Union 

nations  of 
single  king- 
is  spread  so 
w  England, 
ailway  and 


CirAf.  XII. 


NEW  vonic. 


193 


Bteam-boat  arc  .o  ^rcat  and  n        ,  ^^^ 

'-Pi^lly,  that  the  t^fenry:six  ,r,?^'"^'!'  ''"P-vinff  .o 
«  population  of  seventeerm  ,1     '"'  ''  '''^^'  ''"^'"y 
«nd  I.Ion.  more  thoro  Jwy  '^^  "''^  "'^  ""'K 
the  thirteen  States  in  ir?     ,,       'T  "^^'""'  ^'>«"  did 
7'y  throe  millions.     In  '    1  l^"  ^''^'^  """"^^'^  were 
o^^he  federal  amhority^^;.    '"  ^o" tin ued  decline 
connnercial  inteicsts  between.  T'"""^  ^°"«'«^  of 
«nd  the  violent  passion    o"/".  ^'"''  °'"'  S°"^h, 
;««vement,theoldcoCVnr    1  \'^''  ^nti-slavery 
;«»-  <lown  from  yea     o    t^^t^p'""  ^o^^- 

^ws,  and  literature,  have  n'rvJ  ^      "^'"'*  '""^"W 
f"tch,   German,   and   p^  ^^  'r  ""^  n.ore  the 
danger  of  the  dismemb  rmen    „f  f  "^'T'  ""^   ^^^ 
P;«rs  to  all  reflecting  i^^,'^'' ':''^''^^-^y -P- 
than  formerly.  ^  /'"'"icians  less  mmiinent  now 

I  dined  witli  Mr   Ac 
Whose  „a„o  i!',     ,  tZnTj"'  ""r"""  '»  y»rs, 
ton  Irv,V,  "Astoria  "Holt  ''''f «'^  "nVashfeg.' 
«^.'"  «o  found  a  la,,„  ^|, "  Tr"  '"^  "•="  f-^  <-»» 
which  I  rejoice  to  hear  as    ,»         '"'^  '"  ^"'^  York, 

ex-pe„sive  European wi^fetiH''  ""''''  '°  ?"'•'=''««> 
I  often  reffretj,  d«„wt  ^  i."""""""' "'"^'ration* 
the  .0,™  of  Altany,  150  mi  !,  '''"''"™  <«"•«'  '''at 
e^u^'e  it  i,  the  capital  ,„"  f ""''  ''  ^"'"<^'  be- 

of  ».ne,.,s,  rocCnd  K'^  T'™'"''  -"-'»o 
government  survey.    ThT   „       ""^  '>"™g  the  lato 
>»  "^nging  these  treasures  1"^^  '"■^  "™-  """P'oyed 
h^ve  been  far  „„„  u^^fr"^      """'"'"■'='' w™'-! 
suited  if  placed  i„  .h„"„  ^  ""f.  ,'»»e  frequently  con- 

havmg  a  population  of  3W)TOot!rt''^'"''^'''»H 
"-",  Who  have  only  visited  nL^^  fj'''^^-.  - 

jj         '^'^^  for  commercial 


in 


1  I 


194 


VARIABLE    CLIMATE. 


CiiAP.  zn. 


purposes,  may  imagine  that  all  the  inhabitants  are  ex- 
clusively engrossed  with  trade  and  money-making ; 
but  there  is  a  college  here,  and  many  large  and  flour- 
ishing literary  and  scientific  institutions.  I  received 
numerous  invitations  to  deliver  lectures  on  geology,  but 
had  scarcely  time  to  finish  one  short  course  when  I 
was  reminded,  by  the  breaking  up  of  winter,  that  I 
could  rcsimie  my  operations  in  the  field. 

It  was  now  the  second  week  of  April,  and  alieady 
the  willows  on  "  the  Battery"  were  putting  forth  their 
yellowish-green  leaves.  The  air  was  as  warm  as  in 
an  English  summer,  ahl.ough  a  few  days  before  the 
ground  had  been  covered  with  snow.  Such  sudden 
changes  are  trying  to  many  constitutions ;  and  we  are 
told  that  if  we  staid  a  second  year  in  the  United  States 
we  should  feel  the  influence  of  the  climate,  and  begin 
to  lose  that  freshness  of  colour  which  marks  the  newly- 
arrived  Englishman.  The  greater  sallowness  of  com- 
plexion here  is  attributed  to  the  want  of  humidity  in 
the  air ;  and  we  ought  to  congratulate  ourselves  that 
there  is  no  lack  of  that  ingredient  in  the  atmosphere  of 
Great  Britain.  We  continue  to  be  surprised  at  the 
clearness  of  the  skies,  and  the  number  of  fine  days  and 
bright  star-light  nights,  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

April  12,  1842. — Left  New  York,  and  ascended  the 
North  River  to  Hudson  City,  to  observe  there  the  tran- 
sition or  Silurian  slates  and  limestones.  These  rocks 
have  undergone  so  much  disturbance  that  I  was  un- 
able to  satisfy  myself — perhaps  from  want  of  more 
time  for  observation — whether  the  alleged  imconform- 
ability  of  the  fossiliferous  limestone  to  the  black  slate 
is  real  or  only  apparent,  and  owing  to  shifts  in  the 
position  of  the  strata.    From  Hudson  City  I  followed 


'i 


fiil 


Chap.  xii. 

tants  areex- 
ley-making ; 
fe  and  llour- 
I  received 
geology,  but 
jise  when  I 
inter,  that  I 

and  aUeady 
g  forth  their 
warm  as  in 
^s  before  the 
kich  sudden 
and  we  are 
Jnited  States 
:e,  and  begin 
:s  the  newly- 
ness  of  com- 
humidity  in 
urselves  that 
tmosphere  of 
•rised  at  the 
ine  days  and 
Atlantic, 
ascended  the 
ere  the  tran- 
These  rocks 
at  I  was  un- 
ant  of  more 
1  unconform- 
e  black  slate 
shifts  in  the 
ity  I  followed 


Chap.  xit. 


TACOMC   GROUP    OP   STRATA. 


195 


""•y  be  considered,  go""S°' """"'=""-    They 
«f 'l,e  Green  Mo„„ X"';;'^     ""y'  "^  =>  co„,i„ua.J 

l^iTergready  i„  ti.eir  "  „w  ,    "?  '  """  "'"^  ""  "<" 
■«am  rocks  being  g„e|    3,       ■■""'"■"'  "'"  P"^"" 
crystalline  linresfofcX' Wn'",'''  '^'l'^  ^''"^'  ""'1 
in  tl.e  ordinary  nom^^la  T  T    ?  °'"''"'^''  """W 
■"-y.    They'harhow         "1'"^  '^  -"«"  P- 
Phie,  because  in  some  of  ,h.'  """"'  "«^'»»>°f- 

feoids  and  verXrmlv     """^'^  -htes  .„,ces  of 
been  discovered      Z'"''"^'  «'''«''   ^'«'««»,  have 

Rogers  have  e„trr'"''™*  '''"''  "'  »■ 
"■«  highly  prob'ab  after  aTn?"'  "  '""  "PP^^^^"  "• 
these  hills,  thai  they  consV?  ??"'  """'"'""lion  of 
^'-  Emmons,  on  Z  oZ  ,1:"^'^", «''"™"  ^'^ta- 
arc  more  ancient  tinn  .U    ,         '  """""''"  "'»'  «hev 

-  fossiiiferons  i;:;;^  ;t;~"T"^  °^ "'» »""- 

they  are  sedimentary  strata  nf  „  "''~"'  "  «'0«l,  that 
S"".-",  in  a  me./,;:;,!!:^  1,"'""T  '»  '"» 
rangcment  of  the  masses    .h.7      •  ''"''"'  «f  •''- 

and  organic  remain  are  apea  ,?"•""'  "'"'""«"'' 
'heory  ;  and  several  s^cZTf  "  ■"  '"PP""  o^ 'hi» 
'ha'  'he  mast  anden,  ,  ^-^'^ered  as  proving 
-ies  res.  nndn^^  ,yT„  ^^  1  ""'  ^'"'  Y™* 
which  Dr.  Emmons  2eZt  ?  '''''''^"' '" 

.  ^y^'em.  But  the  fossi  a  '  !  r  "'  ""^  '^'''^'"0 
either  to  species  foutd  in  hrl:;-"""  "  ""'"''»-'- 
United  States  or  in  ,1,„,1  „  """"  ""a'a  in  the 

'he  Nereites  (a  spe^i^s:   Z^^VT^'r  '*« 


I 


i   ■  ! 


i 


196 


PLUMBAGINOUS    ANTHRACITE. 


Chap.  xii. 


I  went  afterwards  to  examine  the  mica  schist  of 
"Worcester,  in  Massachusetts,  to  tlie  east  of  the  Taco- 
nic  range  and  of  the  Connecticut  River,  and  forty-five 
miles  due  west  of  Boston.  I  found,  interstratified  with 
the  mica  schist  and  associated  clay-slate  of  this  place,  a 
regular  bed  of  plumbaginous  anthracite,  or  impure 
graphite,  portions  of  which  give  a  streak  on  paper  like 
a  lead  pencil.  It  has  been  used  for  making  pencils, 
while  a  part  of  the  stratum  has  been  worked  for  coal, 
but  apparently  without  profit,  as  the  mine  is  now 
abandoned.  The  mica  schist  contains  garnets  and 
asbestus,  and  is  much  impregnated  with  carbonaceous 
K.  tter.  I  searched  in  vain  for  vegetable  impressions 
in  the  plumbaginous  anthracite,  which  was  in  part 
iridescent,  hkc  coal,  and  so  much  resembled  some  of 
the  earthy  anthracites  which  1  soon  afterwards  saw  on 
the  borders  of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island,  at 
Wrentham,  Cumberland,  Attleborough,  and  Mansfield, 
that  I  feel  strongly  inclined  to  believe  that  the  Wor- 
cester beds,  however  crystalline  they  may  be,  are  no 
other  than  carboniferous  rocks  in  an  altered  or  meta- 
morphic  state.  At  the  various  localities  last  men- 
tioned I  found  in  the  carbonaceous  slates  accompany- 
ing the  anthracite  the  most  common  coal  plants,  such 
as  Pecopteris  plumosa,  Neuropteris  flexuosa,  Spheno- 
phyllum,  Calamites,  (fcc.  Although  the  associated 
strata  were  not  in  a  crystalline  condition,  they  and  the 
coal  were  occasionally  traversed  with  veins  of  quartz, 
like  the  plumbaginous  bed  at  Worcester;  and  there 
are  many  places  in  Rhode  Island  and  Massachusetts, 
pointed  out  by  Dr.  C.  T.  .Jackson  and  Professor  Hitch- 
cock, in  which  the  carboniferous  and  old  red  sandstone 
rocks  pass  into  mica  schist,  and  other  hypogcne  rocks, 


N 


Chap.  xn. 


Chap.  xii. 


ANTHRACITE    IN    MICA    SCHIST. 


197 


schist  of 
he  Taco- 
foity-five 
ified  with 
is  place,  a 
ir  impure 
paper  like 
ig  pencils, 
1  for  coal, 
^e  is  now 
rjiets  and 
bonaceous 
mpressions 
as  in  part 
d  some  of 
rds  saw  on 
Island,  at, 
Mansfield, 
the  Wor- 
|be,  are  no 
d  or  meta- 
last  nien- 
;company- 
.ants,  such 
Spheno- 
associated 
ly  and  the 
f  quartz, 
nd  there 
ichusetts, 
or  Hitch- 
andstone 
lie  rocks, 


especially  in  the  neighbourhood  of  masses  of  granite 
and  syenite.  In  some  cases  the  pebbles  of  the  con- 
glomerate remain  distinct,  while  the  shaly  base  has 
been  turned  into  a  well-characterised  mica  schist,  of 
which  I  obtained  specimens. 

1  have  already  mentioned  (p.  72.)  that  in  crossing 
from  the  west  of  the  Alleghany  mountains  to  the  east- 
ern portion  of  the  Appalachian  coal-field  the  volatile 
ingredients  (oxygen,  hydrogen,  and  nitrogen)  of  the 
original  coal  bear  continually  a  smaller  and  smaller 
proportion  to  the  carbon.  In  the  specimens  which  I 
myself  obtained  from  Pomeroy,  Ohio,  where  the  coal 
is  bituminous,  and  where  the  strata  are  undisturbed, 
the  quantity  of  gaseous  matter  has  been  found  by  my 
friend  Dr.  Percy  to  be  in  the  proportion  of  19  per  cent., 
the  rest  being  carbon  and  ash.  2dly.  In  the  coal  at 
Frostburg,  in  Maryland,  in  the  midst  of  the  Alleghany 
chain,  where  the  strata  have  undergone  but  slight  dis- 
turbance, the  proportion  of  volatile  matter  was  found 
to  be  9^  per  cent.  3dly.  In  the  Pennsylvanian  an- 
thracite of  the  Lehigh  and  Mauch  Chunk  mines, 
before  alluded  to  (p.  69.),  the  volatile  ingredients  are 
about  5  per  cent.* 

In  the  plumbaginous  anthracite  of  Worcester  the 
proportion  of  volatile  matter  is  about  3  per  cent.,  there 
being  a  slight  trace  of  nitrogen.     I  conceive  that  a 

*  These  results  were  obtained  from  an  elaborate  analysis  made  for 
me  by  the  kindness  of  Dr.  J.  Percy  of  Birmingham,  since  the  state- 
ment given  at  p.  73.  was  printed.  They  bear  out  the  geological  in- 
ferences, there  referred  to,  of  Professor  H.  D.  Rogers ;  but  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  proportions  of  the  chemical  constituents  differ  greatly, 
the  gaseous  matter  being  only  half  the  previously  estimated  quantity. 
For  details  of  the  analysis  and  manipulations,  see  Appendix  to  a  paper 
by  tho  author,  in  the  Journal  of  Geol.  Soc.,  London,  No.  II.  1645. 

17* 


"i 


198 


ANTHRACITE    IN   MICA   SCHIST.        Chap.  xn. 


more  powerful  action  ^^f  those  same  plutonic  causes 
(heat,  and  other  subterranean  agencies)  whicl)  are  ca- 
pable of  converting  sedimentary  into  crystalline  rocks 
may  have  expelled  nearly  all  the  gaseous  ingredients 
fiom  a  stratum  of  coal  or  anthracite,  and  turned  it  into 
an  impure  plumbago,  while  the  carboniferous  grits  and 
shales  were  changed  into  carbonaceous  mica-schist, 
clay-slate,  and  quartzite.  At  Little  Falls,  on  the  Mo- 
hawk River,  and  elsewhere  in  the  U.  S.,  and  at  the 
Falls  of  Montmorency,  and  other  places  in  Canada,  I 
have  seen  the  lowest  Silurian  strata  resting  uncon- 
formably  on  gneiss  and  other  hypogenc  formations. 
But  we  ought  not  to  be  surprised  on  that  account,  if 
we  find  on  the  American  continent,  as  in  the  Swiss 
Alps  and  other  regions  in  Europe,  strata  containing 
plants  of  the  coal-measures,  or  of  still  newer  dates, 
which  have  acquired  the  hypogene  or  metamorphic 
structure.  Near  the  Atlantic  border  of  the  United 
States,  in  particular,  we  should  be  prepared  for  such  a 
discovery,  for  we  know  that  those  powerful  movements 
which  have  given  rise  to  the  Appalachian  chain,  fold- 
ing and  dislocating  the  solid  rocks  for  a  breadth  of  150, 
and  a  length  of  more  than  1000  miles,  and  the  injec- 
tion into  the  eastern  portion  of  the  chain,  of  igneous 
rocks  of  the  trappean  and  plutonic  order,  are  phenom- 
ena posterior  in  date  to  the  deposition  of  the  American 
carboniferous  strata.  During  so  long  a  series  of  sub- 
terranean changes  as  are  implied  by  these  disturbances 
it  may  well  have  happened  that  considerable  masses  of 
the  coal-bearing,  as  well  as  of  more  ancient  paleozoic 
strata,  should  have  assumed  a  crystalline  texture. 

At  a  small  New  England  town  in  the  Taconic  hills 
above  mentioned  I  was  getting  some  travelling  in- 


't 


Chap.  xii. 


LECTURES    IN    NEW   ENGLAND. 


199 


structions  at  the  bar  of  an  inn,  when  a  carpenter  en- 
tered who  had  just  finished  his  day's  work,  and  asked 
what  lecture  would  be  given  that  evening.  The  re- 
ply was,  Mr.  N.  on  the  Astronomy  of  the  Middle 
Ages.  He  then  inquired  if  it  was  gratis,  and  was  an- 
swered in  the  negative,  the  price  being  twenty-five 
cents  (or  one  shilling  English) ;  upon  which  he  said 
he  should  go,  and  accordingly  returned  home  to  dress. 
It  reflects  no  small  credit  on  the  national  system  of 
education  in  New  England,  that  crowds  of  the  labour- 
ing classes  of  both  sexes  should  seek  recreation,  after 
the  toils  of  the  day  are  over,  in  listening  to  discourses 
of  this  kind.  Among  the  most  popular  subjects  of  lec- 
tures which  I  saw  announced  in  newspapers  or  pla- 
cards in  different  towns  and  villages  were  Temperance, 
a  cause  which  has  made  great  progress  of  late  years 
among  Protestants  as  well  as  Catholics,  and  which 
began  in  the  U.  S.  fifteen  years  before  the  correspond- 
ing movement  in  Great  Britain ;  Phrenology,  to  the 
pretensions  of  which  the  Americans  lend  too  credulous 
an  ear ;  tVie  History  of  the  American  Revolution  ;  the 
Present  State  and  Past  History  of  China  ;  Travels  in 
the  Holy  Land  ;  Meteorology,  and  a  variety  of  other 
topics. 

April  15. — Visited  Professor  Hitchcock  at  Amherst 
College,  Massachusetts,  by  whom  the  geological  sur- 
vey of  that  State  has  been  ably  executed.  He  showed 
me  several  ridges  and  large  rounded  hillocks  of  trans- 
ported materials,  or  "  drift,"  north  of  Amherst,  sur- 
rounding swamps,  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as 
those  usually  referred  to  the  glacial  period  in  Scotland 
and  Northern  Europe.  They  have  been  called  "  mo- 
raines" by  some  geologists  ;  but  if  we  call  in  the  agency 


200 


FOSSIL    FOOTSTEPS   OP   BIRDS. 


Chap.  xii. 


of  ice,  as  I  am  well  disposed  to  do,  we  must  attribute 
their  accumulation  to  the  melting  of  icebergs  charged 
with  fragments  of  gravel  and  rock,  rather  than  to  gla- 
ciers. Professor  Hitchcock  has,  in  fact,  styled  them 
iceberg  moraines. 

At  Smith's  Ferry,  near  Northampton,  about  eleven 
miles  north  of  Springfield,  I  examined,  in  company 
with  the  Professor,  the  red  sandstone  on  the  banks  of 
the  Connecticut  River,  where  the  celebrated  foot- prints 
of  birds  are  beautifully  exhibited.  The  rock  consists 
of  thin-bedded  sandstone  (New  Red,  Trias  ?)  alterna- 
ting with  red  coloured  shale,  some  of  the  flags  being 
distinctly  ripple-marked.  The  dip  of  the  layers,  on 
which  the  Ornithichnites  are  imprinted  in  great  abun- 
dance, varies  from  eleven  to  fifteen  degrees.  It  is  evi- 
dent that  in  this  place  many  isuperimposed  beds  must 
have  been  successively  trodden  upon,  as  different  sets 
of  footsteps  are  traceable  through  a  thickness  of  sand- 
stone exceeding  ten  feet.  My  companion  also  pointed 
out  to  me  that  some  of  the  beds,  exposed  several  yards 
down  the  river,  and  containing  Ornithichnites,  would, 
if  prolonged,  pass  under  those  of  the  principal  locality, 
and  make  the  entire  thickness  throughout  which  the 
impressions  prevail  at  intervals,  perhaps,  twenty  or 
thirty  feet.  We  cannot,  therefore,  explain  these  phe- 
nomena simply  by  supposing  large  sheets  of  mud  to 
have  been  spread  out  by  the  tidal  waters,  as  may  be 
observed  on  the  broad  flats  bordering  the  Bay  of  Fun- 
dy.  These  last,  it  is  true,  as  will  be  shown  in  a  future 
chapter,  exhibit  the  recent  foot-prints  of  birds,  in  many 
successive  layers,  for  a  depth  of  two  or  three  inches ; 
but  I  cannot  conceive  such  markings  to  extend  through 
a  thickness  of  twenty-five  feet  without  supposing  a 


P, 


i 


Chap.  xii.         FOSSIL   FOOTSTEPS   OF    niRDS. 


201 


ttributo 
rharged 
1  to  gla- 
d  them 

.  eleven 
ompany 
lanks  of 
3t-prints 
consists 
alterna- 
rs  being 
yers,  on 
at  abun- 
X  is  evi- 
ds  must 
rent  sets 
of  sand- 
pointed 
al  yards 
1,  would, 
locality, 
ich  the 
enty  or 
!se  phe- 
mud  to 
may  be 
f  Fun- 
future 
many 
inches ; 
[hrough 
psing  a 


m 


subsidence  of  the  ground  to  have  taken  place  from  time 
to  time  during  the  deposition  of  the  layers  on  which 
the  birds  walked.  The  tracks  are  too  well  defined  and 
distinct  to  have  been  made  under  water :  there  are 
clear  indications  of  joints  in  the  different  toes ;  and 
there  is  generally  such  a  deviation  from  a  straight  line 
in  any  three  prints  following  each  other  as  is  observa- 
ble in  the  trifid  marks  which  birds  leave  on  the  sands 
of  the  sea-coast.  The  birds  must  have  been  of  various 
sizes,  from  that  of  a  small  sand-piper  to  bipeds  larger 
than  the  ostrich  ;  and  it  is  highly  interesting  to  remark 
how  regularly  the  distance  between  the  footsteps  in- 
creases or  diminishes  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the 
foot-marks.  In  some  of  the  most  diminutive,  for  ex- 
ample, they  are  no  more  than  three  inches  apart,  but 
in  the  case  of  the  largest  {Ornithichnites  gigas)  they 
are  from  four  to  six  feet.  The  length  of  the  foot  in 
the  huge  species  last  mentioned  is  in  some  instances 
no  less  than  nineteen  inches.  Its  magnitude  being 
nearly  twofold  that  of  the  African  ostrich,  as  estimated 
by  the  foot  {ex  pede  Herculem),  and  the  acknowledged 
antiquity  of  the  rock,  disinclined  many  naturalists  to 
adopt  the  views  of  Professor  Hitchcock,  when  he  re- 
ferred the  markings  to  extinct  birds ;  but  the  discovery 
of  the  bones  of  the  Moa  or  Dinornis  of  New  Zealand, 
described  by  Mr.  Owen,  proved  the  existence,  at  no 
remote  period,  of  feathered  bipeds  nearly  as  gigantic, 
and  reconciled  the  zoologist  at  least  to  the  credibility 
of  the  fact,  however  marvellous. 

The  waters  of  the  Connecticut  being  low,  I  had  an 
opportunity  of  seeing  a  ledge  of  rock  of  red  shale  laid 
bare,  on  which  were  imprinted  a  single  line  of  nine 
footsteps  of  Ornithichnites  giganteus,  turning  alter- 


1^  I 


i 


202 


MOUNT  HOLYOKE. 


Chap.  xii. 


m 


nately  right  and  left,  and  separated  from  each  other 
by  intervals  of  about  five  feet.  At  one  spot  there  was 
a  space  several  yards  square,  where  the  entire  surface 
of  the  shale  was  irregular  and  jagged,  owing  to  the 
number  of  footsteps,  not  one  of  which  could  be  traced 
distinctly,  as  when  a  flock  of  sheep  have  passed  over  a 
muddy  road ;  but  on  withdrawing  from  this  area  the 
confusion  gradually  ceased,  and  the  tracks  became 
more  and  more  distinct.  The  Professor  informed  me, 
that  since  he  first  announced  his  belief,  in  1836,  that 
these  impressions  were  referable  to  birds,  he  had  ob- 
served above  two  thousand  foot-prints,  probably  made 
by  nearly  thirty  distinct  s|)ecies,  all  indented  on  the 
upper  surface  of  the  strata,  and  only  exhibiting  casta 
hi  relief  on  the  under  side  of  the  beds  resting  on  such 
indented  surfaces. 

This  sandstone  is  of  much  higher  antiquity  (see  p. 
125.)  than  any  formation  in  which  fossil  bones  or  other 
indications  of  birds  have  been  detected  in  Europe. 
Still  we  have  no  ground  for  inferring  from  such  facta 
that  the  feathered  tribe  made  its  first  appearance  in 
the  western  hemisphere  at  this  period.  It  is  too  com- 
mon a  fallacy  to  fix  the  era  of  the  first  creation  of  each 
tribe  of  plants  or  animals,  and  even  of  animate  beings 
in  general,  at  the  precise  point  where  our  present  retro- 
spective knowledge  happens  to  stop.  The  discoveriea 
in  the  Connecticut  valley  ought  to  teach  us  extreme  cau- 
tion in  deducing  general  conclusions  from  mere  negative 
evidence,  especially  when  we  infer  the  non-existence  of 
land  animals  from  the  absence  of  their  remains  in  con- 
temporaneous marine  strata. 

On  leaving  Amherst  for  Springfield,  we  ascended 
Mount  Hdyoke,  the  lower  part  of  which  is  formed  of 


Chap.  XII.     GEOLOGY   OF   MARTHA's   VINEYARD.        203 


horizontal  strata  of  red  sandstone,  while  the  summit  i3 
capped  with  a  picturesque  mass  of  basaltic  greenstone. 
This  hill  has  been  isolated  by  denudation,  and  from  its 
summit  we  enjoyed  a  fine  view  of  the  fertile  plain  of 
the  winding  Connecticut.  On  its  flanks  we  gathered 
the  blue  Hepatica  triloba,  the  Houstonia  cerulea,  a 
white  saxifrage,  the  May  flower,  EpigCBa  repens,  and 
several  plants,  which  have  been  recently  naturaUsed  in 
British  gardens. 

Immediately  after  my  arrival  at  Boston  I  set  out 
(April  19th)  to  explore  the  island  of  Martha's  Vineyard, 
off  the  south  coast  of  Massachusetts.     Travellers  who 
made  this  excursion  a  few  years  ago  complain  of  being 
jolted  in  a  coach  over  deep  ruts  and  huge  stones :  now, 
an  excellent  railway  carried  me  rapidly  to  New  Bed- 
ford on  the  coast,  where  a  steam-boat  was  in  readiness, 
so  that,  having  started  long  after  sunrise,  I  was  landed 
on  "  the  Vineyard,"  eighty  miles  distant  from  Boston, 
in  time  to  traverse  half  the  island,  which  is  about  20 
miles  long  from  east  to  west,  before  sunset.     Late  in 
the  evening  I  reached  the  lofty  cliffs  of  Gayhead,  more 
than  200  feet  high,  at  the  western  end  of  the  island, 
where  the  highly-inchned  tertiary  strata   are   gaily 
coloured,  some  consisting  of  bright  red  clays,  others  of 
white,  yellow,  and  green  sand,  and  some  of  black  lig- 
nite.    They  have  been  compared,  not  unaptly,  by 
Professor  Hitchcock,  to  the  tertiary  beds  of  Alum  Bay 
in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  which  they  resemble  in  appear- 
ance, though  not  in  age.     I  collected   many  fossils 
here,  assisted  by  some  resident  Indians,  who  are  very 
intelligent.     The  section  is  continuous  for  four  fifths 
of  a  mile,  the  beds  dipping  to  the  N.  E.  at  an  angle  of 
from  35®  to  50'',  and  in  some  places  to  7Qr'.    Their 


204 


GEOLOGY   OF   MARTHA'S   VINEYARD.      Ciur.  XIL 


entire  thickness  must  be  very  great,  exceeding  2000 
feet.  The  clays  predominate  over  the  sands.  In  the 
black  beds  containing  lignites  coniferous  wood  is  abun- 
dant, and  amber  is  said  to  have  been  found.  The  or- 
ganic remains  prevail  at  intervals  in  various  strata,  but 
I  extracted  most  of  them  from  a  bed  of  green  sand  (6), 

Fig.  6. 


N.E. 


s.w. 


Seeticn  at  Oayhtai. 

A.  Lighthouse.  h.  Oreensnnd  with  tharks*  teeth, 

e.  Osseous  conglomerate  with  walrus.       d.  Drift. 

near  the  north-eastern  end.  They  consisted  of  casts 
of  shells,  teeth  of  large  sharks,  the  vertebrae  of  a  dol- 
phin, and  of  a  whale  of  great  size.  I  also  discovered 
a  tooth  referred  by  Mr.  Owen  to  the  canine  tooth  of  a 
seal. 

Together  with  these,  I  found  numerous  nodules  of 
the  shape  of  kidney  potatoes,  from  one  to  two  inches 
in  diameter,  smooth  externally,  which  I  presume  to 
have  been  coprolites.  They  have  been  analysed  for 
me  by  my  friend  J.  Middleton,  Esq.,  F.  G.  S.,  and 
found  to  contain  no  less  than  50  per  cent,  of  phosphate 
of  lime,  the  constitution  of  the  latter  being  such  as  is 
peculiar  to  organic  substances.  They  also  consist  of 
fluoride  of  calcium,  chloride  of  sodium,  and  other  ele- 
ments. These  coprolites,  therefore,  seem  closely  anal- 
ogous in  composition  as  in  age,  to  those  found  by 
Professor  Henslow  in  the  Suffolk  crag  of  Felixstow, 
and  which  accompany  the  bones  of  sharks  and  cetacea. 

Near  the  Ughthouse  there  is  a  great  fold  in  the 
beds,  where  they  are  so  bent  as  to  have  twice  a  north- 
easterly and  once  a  south-westerly  dip.    One  of  these 


Chat,  xiu 

\g  2000 
In  the 
is  abun- 
The  or- 
'ata,  but 
land  (6), 

8.W. 


rks'  teeth. 

of  casts 
)f  a  dol- 
scovered 
oth  of  a 


iulcs  of 
o  inches 
3ume  to 
ysed  for 
S.,  and 
losphate 
ch  as  is 
fisist  of 
er  ele- 
y  anal- 
|und  by 
ixstow, 
etacea. 
in  the 
north- 
if  these 


» 


*-;V 


k   k 


p^l 


f 


■'<^f'I::i'-''-  . 


^''i 
•>■»«, 


s^ 


A 


«>^ 


©<■ 


4 
! 

J 

i 
f 

■4 

■« 
4 


V 


i  •'~-  R 

i  ^  1:1 


't;    ' 


^'% 


% 


^fc- 


li 


^ '  ■■■.    *<«»■(.'•  i'^jf ' 


u  ^    I*. 

■^  ^  5  "S 

•  ■*■'<" 

S  ^  ^^ 


^ 


.1 


■^5 


i^    -►< 


if 


^ 


sf 


j^/r^-- 


Chat.  xii. 


FOSSIL    WALRUS. 


205 


folded  beds  (c)  consists  of  an  osseous  conglomerate,  in 
which  I  found  several  rolled  cetaceous  remains  ;  and 
I  purchased  from  a  fisherman  residing  near  the  pro- 
montory a  fossil  skull,  which  he  told  me  had  fallen 
out  of  this  conglomerate  upon  the  beach  below.  It 
retained  but  a  small  portion  of  the  original  animal 
matter,  was  slightly  rolled,  and  Mr.  Owen  recognised 
it  as  the  cranium  of  a  Walrus,  or  Morse,  nearly  allied 
to  the  existing  species  ( Trichecus  Rosmarus,  Linn.). 
On  comparison,  it  was  observed  to  differ  from  it,  in 
having  six  molar  teeth,  instead  of  four,  on  each  side 
of  the  upper  jaw.  There  are  eleven  specimens  of  the 
recent  species  in  the  College  of  Surgeons,  in  all  of 
which  there  are  no  more  than  four  grinders  on  each 
side.  The  tusk,  also,  of  the  Gayhead  fossil  has  a 
rounder  form  than  that  of  the  recent  Morse.  (See 
plate  V.) 

Near  Chilmark,  on  the  S.W.  side  of  the  island,  I 
found  the  same  beds  as  at  Gayhead,  in  a  still  more 
disturbed  state.  Upon  the  whole,  the  organic  remains, 
especially  the  sharks'  teeth,  lead  me  decidedly  to  the 
opinion  that  the  strata  belong  to  a  part  of  the  tertiary 
series  newer  than  the  Eocene,  to  which  they  were 
formerly  referred.  They  must  be  at  least  as  modern 
as  the  Miocene  marls  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  before 
described  (p.  134).  Several  of  the  sharks'  teeth  are 
specifically  identical  with  the  fossils  of  those  marls,  and 
of  the  Faluns  of  Touraine  and  the  Suffolk  crag ;  and 
there  are  no  greensands  either  of  the  Eocene  or  cre- 
taceous periods  in  Martha's  Vineyard,  as  some  have 
conjectured.  These  conclusions,  in  regard  to  the  mod- 
em date  of  this  formation,  are  interesting,  because,  but 
for  this  small  island,  we  should  have  bad  no  evidence 

18 


206 


Martha's  vineyard. 


Chap.  xii. 


of  the  development  of  a  great  series  of  subterranean 
movements  in  this  part  of  the  American  continent. 
The  disturbances  in  question  occurred  between  the 
Miocene  epoch  and  the  Boulder  period ;  and  we  know 
not  how  far  their  influence  may  have  extended  over 
the  hypogene  rocks  of  New  England. 

The  tertiary  clays  and  sands  of  Martha's  Vineyard 
are  for  the  most  part  deeply  buried  beneath  a  mass  of 
drift  {d,  Fig.  6.),  in  which  lie  huge  erratic  blocks  of 
granite,  often  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  in  diameter, 
which  must  have  come  from  the  North,  probably  from 
the  mountains  of  New  Hampshire.  This  covering  of 
granitic  detritus  imparts  to  the  soil  a  sterile  character 
totally  different  from  that  which  would  naturally  be- 
long to  the  tertiary  clays  and  marls. 

I  alluded  to  some  Indians  settled  near  Gayhead,  a 
remnant  of  the  aborigines,  who  have  been  protected 
by  the  Government  of  Massachusetts,  all  sales  of  land 
by  them  to  the  whites  being  null  and  void  by  law. 
They  make  excellent  sailors  in  the  whale-fishery  of 
the  South  Seas,  a  source  of  great  wealth  to  the  inhab- 
itants of  "  the  Vineyard,"  and  of  New  Bedford  on  the 
main  land.  That  occupation,  with  all  its  privations 
and  dangers,  seems  admirably  suited  to  the  bodily  con- 
stitution and  hereditary  instinct  of  a  hunter  tribe,  to 
whom  steady  and  continuous  labour  is  irksome  and 
injurious. 

The  history  of  the  extermination  of  the  aboriginal 
Indians  of  New  England  is  a  melancholy  tale,  especial- 
ly after  so  many  successful  exertions  had  been  made 
to  educate  and  christianize  them.  When  at  Harvard 
College,  a  copy  of  the  Bible  was  shown  me  by  Mr. 
.Tared  Sparks,  translated  by  the  missionary  Father 


') 


Chap.  zii. 


INDIANS. 


207 


Elliott  into  the  Indian  tongue.  It  is  now  a  dead  lan- 
guage, although  preached  for  several  generations  to 
crowded  congregations. 

On  my  return  across  the  Vineyard  from  Gay  head  I 
saw  several  spotted  tortoises  with  red  heads  migrating 
from  one  pond  of  fresh  water  to  another.  On  the  sea- 
shore another  novelty  attracted  my  notice — several 
large  specimens  of  the  King  Crab  {Limulus  polyphe- 
mus)  were  crawling  about  in  the  salt-water  pools  left 
by  the  sea  on  the  retiring  of  the  tide. 


ade 
'ard 
Mr. 
ler 


ii 


208 


BOSTON. 


CUAF.  XIII. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Meeting  of  Association  of  American  Geologists  at  Boston. — Popular 
Libraries  in^New  England. — Large  Sale  of  Literary  Works  ir 
the  United  States. — American  Universities. — Harvard  College- 
near  Boston. — English  Universities. — Peculiarities  of  their  Sys- 
tem.— Historical  Sketch  of  the  Causes  of  these  Peculiarities  not  oj 
Medieval  Origin. — Collegiate  Corporations. — Their  altered  Rela- 
tion to  the  English  Universities  after  the  Reformation. — Constitu- 
tion given  to  Oxford  hy  Leicester  and  Laud. — System  of  Pvblie 
Teaching,  how  superseded  by  the  Collegiate.  — Effects  of  the 
Change. — Oxford  Examination  Statute  of  1800. — Its  subsequent 
Modification  and  Results. — Rise  of  Private  Tutors  at  Oxford  and 
Cambridge. — Consequences  of  this  Innovation. — Struggle  at  Ox- 
ford in  1839  to  restore  the  Professorial  System. — Causes  of  its 
Rejection. — Tractarianistn, — Supremacy  of  Ecclesiastics. — Youth- 
ful Examiners. — Cambridge. — Advocacy  of  the  System  followed 
there. — Influence  of  the  English  Aca  ieinical  Plan  on  the  Cultiva- 
tion of  the  Physical  Sciences,  and  all  Branches  of  Progressive 
Knowledge. — Remedies  and  Reforms. 


\ 


April  25. — I  returned  to  Boston  to  attend  the  third 
annual  meeting  of  the  Association  of  American  Geolo- 
gists, who  had  held  their  previous  meetings  of  1840 
and  1841  at  Philadelphia.  On  the  present  occasion 
Dr.  Morton  took  the  chair,  and  in  the  course  of  the 
week  papers  were  read  and  freely  discussed  on  a  va- 
riety of  scientific  questions  by  many  of  the  leading 
American  geologists,  some  of  whom  had  come  from 
distant  parts  of  the  Union.  The  patronage  afforded 
by  the  state  surveys  has  created  a  numerous  class  both 
of  practised  observers  and  able  writers.  Among  those 
engaged  in  these  government  undertakings,  who  took 


Chap.  xiii. 


MEETING   OP    GEOLOCflSTS. 


209 


part  in  these  proceedings,  I  may  mention  Professor 
Hitchcock,  of  Massachusetts,  Professor  W.  B.  Rogers, 
of  Virginia,  Professor  H.  D.  Rogers,  of  Pennsylvania, 
Mr.  Vanuxem,  Dr.  Emmons,  Mr.  Hall,  and  Dr.  Beck 
— all  engaged  on  the  survey  of  New  York ;  Dr.  Jack- 
son, who  has  surveyed  Rhode  Island,  New  Hampshire, 
and  Maine ;  and  Dr.  Locke,  of  Ohio.  There  were 
also  present  Professor  Silliman  and  his  son,  Messrs. 
Nicollet,  Redfield,  Gould,  Bailey,  Dana,  Couthouy, 
Haldeman,  Hubbard,  J.  L.  Hayes,  and  others,  all 
known  as  authors  or  contributors  to  scientific  pubUca- 
tions.  The  structure  of  the  Alleghany  Hills,  and  of 
the  coal-fields  of  America,  the  origin  of  coral  reefs,  the 
glacial  theory,  the  effects  of  icebergs,  the  nature  of  the 
foot-marks  in  the  red  sandstone  of  Connecticut  valley, 
and  other  subjects,  were  debated  upon  during  the  week, 
in  an  animated  but  most  amicable  style.  The  citizens 
of  Boston,  learning  that  means  were  wanting  for  the 
publication  of  a  series  of  valuable  memoirs,  read  at 
tliis  and  former  meetings  of  the  association,  came  for- 
ward with  their  usual  liberality,  and  supphed  funds, 
by  aid  of  which  a  volume  entitled  "  Transactions  of 
the  Association  of  American  Geologists  for  1840-42,"  a 
work  reflecting  the  highest  credit  on  the  cultivators  of 
gec'ogy  and  its  kindred  sciences  in  America,  made  its 
appearance  soon  afterwards. 

Munificent  bequests  and  donations  for  public  pur- 
poses, whether  charitable  or  educational,  form  a  stri- 
king feature  in  the  modern  history  of  the  United  States, 
and  especially  of  New  England.  Not  only  is  it  com- 
mon for  rich  capitalists  to  leave  by  will  a  portion  of 
their  fortune  towards  the  endowment  of  national  in- 
stitutions, but  individuals  during  their  lifetime  make 

18* 


210 


SALE    OF    BOOKS. 


Chap,  xiii 


\ 


magnificent  giants  of  money  for  the  same  objects. 
There  is  here  no  compul^iory  law  for  the  equal  parti- 
tion of  property  among  cliildren,  as  in  r'rance,  and,  on 
the  other  hand,  no  custom  of  entail  or  primogeniture, 
as  in  England,  so  that  the  afiluent  feel  themselves  at 
hbcrty  to  share  their  wealth  between  their  kindred  and 
the  public ;  it  being  impossible  to  found  a  family,  and 
parents  having  frociuently  the  happiness  of  seeing  all 
their  children  well  provided  for  and  independent  long 
before  their  death.  I  have  seen  a  list  of  bequests  and 
donations  made  during  the  last  thirty  years,  for  the 
benefit  of  religious,  charitable,  and  literar)'  institutions, 
in  the  State  of  Massachusetts  alone,  and  they  amounted 
to  no  less  a  sum  than  six  millions  of  dollars,  or  more 
than  a  million  sterling. 

There  are  popular  libraries  in  almost  every  village 
of  Massachusetts,  and  a  growing  taste  for  the  reading 
of  good  books  is  attested  by  the  sale  of  large  editions 
of  such  Works  as  llerschel's  Natural  Philosophy,  Wash- 
ington Irving's  Columbus,  and  Plutarclrs  Lives.  Of 
each  of  these,  from  five  to  twenty  thousand  copies  have 
been  sold.  It  will  seem  still  more  remarkable,  that  no 
less  than  sixteen  thousand  copies  have  been  purchased 
of  Johnes's  Translation  of  Froissart's  Chronicles,  il- 
lustrated by  wood-engravings,  and  twelve  thousand  of 
Liebig's  Animal  Chemistry.  These  editions  were  very 
cheap,  as  there  was  no  author's  copyright;  but  it  is 
still  more  surprising,  that  about  four  thousand  copies 
of  Prescott's  Mexico  should  have  been  sold  in  one  year 
in  the  U.  S.  at  the  price  of  six  dollars,  or  about  twenty- 
six  shillings.  When,  in  addition  to  these  signs  of  the 
times,  we  remember  the  grants  before  alluded  to,  of  the 
New  England  and  other  states  in  behalf  of  public 


Chap.  xiii. 


AMERICAN    UNIVERSITIES. 


211 


copies 

le  year 

Iventy- 

lof  the 

,  of  the 

public 


schools  and  scientific  surveys,  we  may  indulge  very 
sanguine  hopes  of  the  future  progress  of  this  country 
towards  a  higli  standard  of  general  civilization. 

The  universities  of  the  United  States  are  annually 


increasing 


in  number,  and   their  discipUne  in  New 


England  (to  which  my  inipiirics  on  this  liead  were 
chiefly  confined)  is  very  strict:  a  full  staff  of  profes- 
sors, with  their  assistants  or  tutors,  superintending  at 
once  the  moral  conduct  and  intellectual  culture  of  the 
students.  In  each  university,  there  is  a  divinity-school, 
appropriated  to  some  particular  reHgious  denomination, 
which  is  Presbyterian  or  Independent  at  New  Haven, 
in  Connecticut,  where  there  are  about  six  hundred 
students ;  and  Unitarian  at  Harvard  College,  near 
Boston,  where  there  are  about  four  hundred.  But 
youths  belonging  to  various  sects  resort  indifferently  to 
New  Haven,  Harvard,  and  other  colleges,  to  pursue 
their  ordinary  academical  studies.  After  obtaining 
their  first  degree,  they  enter,  if  intended  for  the  min- 
istry, some  theological  faculty  established  in  the  sp.p^d 
or  in  another  university,  or  constituting  a  separi*  <  e  in- 
stitution for  the  professional  training  of  future  divines. 
The  Episcopalians  have  a  flourishing  college  of  this 
kind  in  the  State  of  New  York.  The  Independents, 
or  Congregationalists,  have  one  at  Andover  in  Massa- 
chusetts, where  a  distinguished  professor  of  biblical 
learning  has  been  known  to  draw  Episcopalians  and 
students  of  other  sects  to  his  lectures,  no  persons  being 
excluded,  by  subscription  to  articles  of  religion,  from 
entering  and  studying  in  any  college. 

The  multiplication  of  academical  establishments,  in 
consequence  of  every  State,  and  every  sect  of  Chris- 
tians in  each  State,  being  ambitious  of  having  schools 


212 


UNIVERSITIES    IN   SCOTLAND.        Chap.  xiii. 


of  their  own,  is  an  evil,  but  one  which  would  be  greatly 
aggravated  were  the  general  as  well  as  the  theological 
education  in  the  iniivcrsitics  alike  sectarian  ;  or  if  stu- 
dents of  classical  literature,  mathematics,  law,  and 
medicine,  all  required  teachers  who  agreed  with  them 
in  every  article  of  faith.  It  has  been  remarked,  by  a 
living  satiri.st,  that  the  force  of  sectarian  animosity, 
like  that  of  gravit}',  increases  inversely  as  the  squares 
of  the  distance ;  but,  in  spite  of  the  occasional  ebulli- 
tion in  recent  times  of  an  intolerant  spirit  on  both  sides 
of  the  Atlantic,  there  arc  many  auspicious  signs  of  the 
approach  of  an  era  when  ditrerences  of  religious  opinion 
will  less  interfere  with  national  systems  of  education, 
both  in  schools  and  colleges.  The  present  state  of 
academical  affairs  in  Scotland  will  perhaps  be  thought 
inconsistent  with  this  view,  where  one  party  has  been 
endeavouring  to  expel  from  the  universities  all  profes- 
sors who  favour  "  free  church"  opinions,  while  the 
seceders  from  the  establishment,  not  satisfied  with  a 
new  divinity-school,  have  aimed  at  a  new  univei*sity 
for  general  instruction.  There  is  now  reason,  how- 
ever, to  hope  that  the  last-mentioned  project  will  fail. 
There  are  already  too  many  academical  institutions  in 
Scotland,  in  proportion  to  the  means  of  adequately  re- 
munerating the  professors  ;  and  their  farther  impover- 
ishment, by  the  withdrawal  of  students  from  them  to 
a  new  college,  would  be  an  injury  to  science  and  civil- 
isation. The  policy  of  the  government  in  1836,  when 
an  attempt  was  made  to  unite  King's  and  Marischal 
Colleges  at  Aberdeen,  was  wise  and  statesmanlike,  but 
it  was  baffled  by  the  local  jealousies  of  the  two  ancient 
rivals.  Every  effort  should  now  be  made  to  confine 
the  new  academical  foundation  to  the  faculty  of  theol- 


,P.  XIII. 

really 
Dffical 
f  stu- 
,  and 
them 
I,  by  a 
nosity, 
quares 
ebulli- 
h  sides 
of  the 
opinion 
ication, 
late  of 
bought 
IS  been 
profes- 
lile  the 
with  a 
iivei*sity 
how- 
iU  fail. 
Itions  in 
|tely  re- 
ipover- 
[hem  to 
id  civil- 
when 
rischal 
jke,  but 
ncient 
;onfine 
theol- 


Chap.  xiii. 


SECTARIAN    SPIRIT. 


213 


iil 


ogy ;  and,  for  the  same  reason,  to  prevent  the  establish- 
mqjit  of  rival  parochial  schools,  for  the  existing  parish 
schools  are  often  at  present  inadequately  supported.  It 
is  deplorable  enough  to  be  compelled  to  admit  the  ne- 
cessity of  any  new  academical  establishment,  when  we 
reflect  that  there  is  absolutely  no  dilFerence  of  doctrine 
between  the  new  rival  churches  in  Scotland  ;  and  that 
the  points  of  dissent  have  been  deemed  for  a  century 
and  a  half  of  such  subordinate  imjwrtance,  as  not  to 
afford  justifiable  grounds  for  an  open  breach.  In  the 
Irish  College  at  Belfast,  endowed  by  government,  a 
professor  of  Greek  of  acknowledged  ability,  nominated 
originally  by  the  crown,  with  the  approbation  of  the 
Presbyterians,  has  suddenly  been  deprived  of  the  greater 
part  of  his  class  in  consequence  of  the  "  free  church" 
movement,  although  no  blame  is  imputed  to  him  on 
the  score  of  a  proselytising  spirit,  or  of  a  wish  to  incul- 
cate his  own  religious  views.  In  the  midst  of  these 
and  other  discouraging  circumstai  ices,  it  is  satisfactory 
to  observe,  that  three  out  of  the  five  Scotch  universities 
have  recently  declared  to  Parliament  their  desire  that 
the  religious  tests  which  now  shackle  them  and  impair 
their  efiicacy  may  be  removed. 

In  no  subject  do  the  An^ericans  display  more  earnest- 
ness than  in  their  desire  to  improve  their  system  of 
education,  both  elementary  and  academical.  They 
have  sent  missionaries  to  Europe,  who  have  published 
elaborate  reports  on  the  methods  of  teaching  now  em- 
ployed in  Britain,  Germany,  Holland,  and  France,  and 
they  seem  ready  to  adopt  whatever  appears  worthy  of 
imitation  in  these  different  models.  The  great  diffi- 
culty under  which  they  labour,  and  one  inevitable  in  a 
new  country,  and  common  to  them  and  the  British 


214 


HARVARD   COLLEGE. 


CiiAr.  XIII. 


nt 


American  colonies,  is  the  early  age  at  which  young 
men  quit  college,  sooner  by  at  least  two  years  thap  in 
England. 

In  Harvard  College,  Cambridge,  near  Boston,  the 
best  endowed  university  in  the  United  Staten,  there 
are  thirty-two  professors,  each  assisted  by  one  or  more 
tutors.  Many  of  them  are  well  known  in  the  literary 
world  as  authors.  Five  only  of  the  thirty-two  were 
educated  for  the  pulpit,  three  of  whom  are  professors 
of  divinity,  one  of  ethics,  and  one  of  history.  All  the 
students  are  required  to  attend  divine  service  in  the 
churches  to  which  they  severally  belong,  but  the  divin- 
ity-school for  professional  education  is  Unitarian.  The 
pupils  are  examined  in  the  New  Testament,  also  in 
Paley's  "  Evidences,"  and  Butler's  "  Analogy."  The 
proportion  of  professors  to  students  (about  400  in  num- 
ber) is  far  greater  than  that  of  college  tutors  in  the 
English  universities.  The  tutors  of  Harvard  College 
may  be  compared,  in  some  degree,  to  our  private  tutors, 
except  that  they  are  more  under  the  direction  of  the 
professors,  being  selected  by  them  from  among  the 
graduates,  as  the  best  scholars,  and  each  is  sjiccialiy 
devoted  to  some  one  department  of  learning.  These 
tutors,  from  whose  number  the  professors  are  very 
commonly  chosen,  usually  teach  the  freshmen,  or  first- 
year  students,  or  prepare  pupils  for  the  professors'  lec- 
tures. Care  is  also  bestowed  on  the  classification  of 
the  young  men,  according  to  their  acquirements,  tal- 
ents, and  tastes.  To  accomplisJi  this  object,  the  stu- 
dent, on  entering,  may  offer  to  undergo  an  examina- 
tion, and,  if  he  succeeds,  he  may  pass  at  once  into  the 
second,  third,  or  fourth  year's  class,  the  intermediate 
steps  being  dispensed  with ;  he  may  also  choose  cer- 


1  I 


Chap.  xm. 

ch  young 
s  thap  in 

>ston,  the 
les,  there 
3  or  more 
c  literary 
wo  were 
3rofessors 

All  the 
e  in  the 
he  divin- 
n.  The 
,  also  in 
."  The 
in  num- 
s  in  the 

College 
e  tutors, 
I  of  the 
mg  the 
specially 

These 
re  very 
or  first- 
!ors'  lec- 
ition  of 
nts,  tal- 
he  stu- 
amina- 
nto  the 
nediate 
)ge  cer- 


Ciup. 


*'"•  ENGL 


•»in  »..ojec„  of  ,„„,     „.,,. 
'ents,  or  are  ovri.o.. ■ , 


ISH    t-MVKRsiTiES. 


215 


-m.s,  or  are  exchangeahle  wirh     m  '        '*' 
fo'"- years  of  the  rXZ\  "'''"'■'•     ^^ 

'™""'"»'«lfc'cofLai 


;';«'•''  regarded  a,  cquiva. 


"i-nileinical  cmi 


ill  the 
...wWjfo  of  Latinrti^'rZ"'/""'*'  "  '""'f^- 

"><=  P"I>il.     Tl,e,e  arc  publ  °  '  "'  "'"  "<"'""  "^ 

"f^very  term  for  awa,r,„  i  ""'""""""'<»  »«  U.e  end 

■'?<">',  or  put  ,,„,fc  i„    ""»;'<  ""=y  Lave  l«„  ne^- 
P-'rio'l  of  ,aki„„  ih,i    i"  "  '""""'  >•«"■•»  class,  the 
f-o".    Honours  a     oh   Cm '";"^'  I"  "«'  -'^  cl=- 
J""  'aught  by  any  pt  ::,.    ,  T  "'"««' ''vory  sub- 
«l'ed  „,«„  as  the  chief    Xl     "'  7"'^''°"  «  "ol 
I'a-ing  an  exan.inaU  „  f     tr "*, '"  """'>•    ^"'^ 
^'"<'en.  can  obtain  the  d  X   'ofZ  ,'  T ''  ^'"^^'  ""« 
«'ay  enter  the  divinity,  raefcr  „H   '  "'i "'  '**'  »'»' 
Every  inquiry  «,i„   hT        '  °'  '""'  ^''ools. 

-<i-  in  At^erica  dlfXr'  ^'""'  "'  "■"  ™-er- 
-turn,  n,a„y  questicTst'  3  '"^/"f"'™"'',  in 
""•■dge.  I  was  asked  by  nXf  °  ^  °"'  ""''  '^'""- 
'V.  modern  history,  ,S^^u  °'  ^«=%y.  chemis- 
branches  of  knowiedk  X 1.  T  ''"'  =»''  °">er 
jeots  had  recently  fallen  "fft  r  i  "'*'  '''"•  ""^<'  ^"b- 
was  their  decline'^^0  be  alSlt  f  "=*'  '"•ive,.i,ic,,2 

of  religious  doctrine  vvhicttt'.,T'™"''"'"''f''™ 
fransplanted  into  the  Unit',.  «'  ^""^ ''"™  '"'^ntly 
vigorously  in  .he  n   v  J"  fl^'  '"t"  "-  ?'o,ving 
*«  the  traetarian  mov  mem  '    n  V"^ '""""i™ 
rather  one  of  the  211  7 „T  ?'^°'''  '''«'  been 
change,  introduced  in  m^lern  t^l  tlr""  ^™'''«" 

umes  into  the  system  of 


216 


ENGLISH    UNIVERSITIES. 


Chap.  xnt. 


instruction  tliorc,  than  tlic  cause  of  the  recent  banish- 
ment from  tliat  seat  of  learning  of  many  sciences  for- 
merly taught  there.  The  more  I  endeavoured  to  ex- 
plain the  presj'ut  state  of  our  academical  course  of  study, 
and  the  peculiar  organisation  of  the  corjw  of  teachers  to 
whom  its  superintendence  is  confided,  the  more  strange 
it  appeared  to  my  New  England  friends  ;  and  I  myself 
became  the  more  aware  of  itsi  distinctive  and  anomalous 
character,  when  contrasted  with  the  methods  followed 
elsewhere.  Many  who  have  been  educated,  like  my- 
Bclf,  at  Oxford,  are  ignorant  of  the  system  of  education 
formerly  acted  upon  in  our  English  universities,  and  of 
the  real- nature  or  causes  of  the  present  state  of  things. 
I  shall,  therefore,  attempt  to  give,  in  tlie  remainder  of 
this  chapter,  a  brief  account  of  the  leading  peculiarities 
of  our  former  and  present  academical  machinery,  and 
to  point  out  its  inevitable  consequence,  the  very  limited 
range  of  studies  which  can  be  pursued,  so  long  as 
things  remain  unaltered.  I  shall  do  this  the  more 
willingly,  because  I  know  that  any  information  which 
may  throw  light  on  the  subject  will  be  equally  interest- 
ing to  my  readers  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

It  may  awaken  curiosity  in  those  who  have  never 
made  any  inquiries  into  these  matters,  if  I  make  one 
or  two  preliminary  statements.  In  the  first  place, 
then,  the  mass  of  students  or  undergraduates  at  Oxford 
is  divided  into  twenty-four  separate  communities  or 
colleges,  very  unequal  in  number,  the  residents  in  each 
varying  from  10  in  the  smaller  to  about  140  in  the 
larger  colleges,  and  the  whole  business  of  educating 
these  separate  sections  of  the  youth  is  restricted  to  the 
tutors  of  the  separate  colleges.  Consequently,  two  or 
three  individuals,  and  occasionally  a  single  instructor, 


\- 


Af.  xni. 

anish- 
03  for- 
to  ex- 
study, 
hers  to 
strange 
uiyself 
malous 
Dllowed 
ke  iny- 
lucation 
,  and  of 
'  things, 
indcv  of 
LiUarities 
cry,  and 
y  limited 
long  as 
le  more 
n  which 
interest- 


ClIAP.    XIII. 


MNflLISIl    UXIVEIISITIES. 


217 


Istructor, 


may  be  railed  upon  to  pivo  loctiuoa  in  all  tlic  dopart- 
nicnlH  of  hiiMian  knowledge  cnihraoed  in  \\w  academ- 
ical couivo.  of  (bur  yearp.  If  the  college  Im;  small,  there 
is  only  occupalion  and  salary  sullicient  to  sup|)ort  one 
tutor ;  any  attempt,  therefore,  to  subdivide  the  dilll'rent 
branches  of  learning  and  sciences  anmng  distinct  teach- 
ers is  abandoned.  There  is  no  opportunity  for  one 
man  to  concentrate  the  powers  of  his  mind  on  a  single 
department  of  learning,  to  endeavour  to  enlarge  its 
bounds,  and  carefidly  to  form  and  direct  the  opinions 
of  his  pupil.  In  a  few  of  the  larger  colleges,  indeed, 
some  rude  approach  to  such  a  partition  is  made,  so  far 
as  to  sever  the  mathematical  from  the  classical  studies ; 
but  even  then  the  tutors  in  each  division,  are  often 
called  u|ion,  in  the  public  examinations,  to  play  their 
part  in  both  departments.  Thus,  a  single  instructor 
gives  lectures  or  examines  in  the  writings  of  the  Greek 
and  Roman  historians,  philosophers,  and  poets,  to- 
gether with  logic,  the  elements  of  mathematics,  and 
theology. 

For  the  benefit  of  my  foreign  readers,  it  may  be  as 
well  to  remark,  that  the  scholars  to  be  taught  are  not 
boys  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  eighteen,  at 
which  latter  age  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  was 
very  commonly  conferrel  in  the  olden  times  at  Oxford, 
but  young  men  between  eighteen  and  twenty-two, 
who,  at  the  expiration  of  their  academical  course, 
usually  quit  college,  and  enter  at  once  upon  a  profes- 
sion, or  into  political  life.  In  the  next  place,  I  may 
state,  that  the  choice  of  teachers,  to  whom  so  arduous 
and  ambitious  a  task  is  allotted,  is  by  no  means  left 
open  to  free  competition,  like  the  professorships  in  most 
ancient  and  modern  universities ;  but,  on  the  contrary, 

19 


218 


ENGLISH    I.MVER3ITIES. 


CllAF.  Xllt. 


'.«■ 


is  confined  within  very  narrow  bounds.  The  college 
tutors  are  selected  from  graduates  who  are  on  the  foun- 
dation of  their  respective  colleges,  and  who  may  have 
obtained  their  appointment  originally,  some  because 
they  happened  to  be  founder's  kin,  or  were  educated  at 
a  particular  school,  others  because  they  were  born  in  a 
particular  town,  county,  or  diocese  ;  a  few  only  being 
selected  from  merit,  or  as  having  distinguished  them- 
selves in  examinations  open  to  all  candidates.  This 
latter  class,  however,  has,  it  is  true,  increased  of  late 
years.  Most  of  these  teachers  forfeit  their  fellowships, 
and  most  probably  with  it  their  oflice  of  tutor,  if  they 
should  marry,  or  if,  after  a  certain  number  of  years, 
they  do  not  embrace  the  clerical  profession.  They 
also  look  to  preferment  in  the  Church,  from  their  posi- 
tion in  their  college,  so  that  they  have  every  induce- 
ment to  regard  the  business  of  teaching  as  a  temporary 
calling,  subordinate  and  subsidiary  to  another,  of  a  dif- 
ferent, and  to  tliem  more  advantageous  and  important, 
kind.  Their  office  as  instructors  is,  in  short,  a  mere 
Btepping-stonc  to  something  else ;  and  they  hope  to 
gain  their  reward,  not  when  they  are  superannuated, 
for  then  they  would  be  unfit  for  highly  responsible 
ecclesiastical  duties,  but  when  they  are  still  in  the 
prime  of  life.  In  fact,  their  promotion  is  so  contrived, 
as  at  once  to  cut  short  the  career  of  usefulness  in  which 
they  may  have  hitherto  distinguished  themselves. 

It  will  naturally  be  taken  for  granted,  by  those  who 
have  never  investigated  the  history  of  the  universities, 
that  the  restrictions  and  fetters  above  enumerated  are 
all  of  monastic  and  medieval  origin.  The  celibacy  of 
the  teachers,  the  almost  entire  monopoly  of  tuition  by 
the  clergy;  seem  clearly  to  point  to  a  period  more  re- 


. 


IIAP.   XIII. 

college 
le  foun- 
ly  have 
because 
:ated  at 
3111  in  a 
ly  being 
1  ihem- 
.    This 
I  of  late 
owships, 
,  if  they 
jf  years, 
They 
lieir  pofci- 
y  incluce- 
impovary 
of  a  dif- 
nportant, 
,  a  mere 
hope  to 
Innuated, 
sponsible 
ll  in  the 
jontrived, 
n  which 
Ives. 

lose  who 
[versities, 
ated  arc 
libacy  of 
[lition  by 
more  re- 


ClIAP.  XIII. 


COLLEGIATr    ORPORATIONS. 


219 


mote  than  tlie  Reformation,  and  when  the  supremacy 
and  exorbitant  power  of  the  church  of  Rome  were  still 
at  their  height.  But  nothing  can  be  fartlier  from  the 
truth.  On.  inquiry,  we  learn  with  surprise,  tliat  the 
original  plan  of  education  at  Oxford  and  Cambridge, 
as  in  the  other  European  universities,  was  public  and 
common  to  the  whole  mass  of  students.  Tlie  present 
system  has  been  upheld  by  no  blind  veneration  for  an- 
cient usages,  nor  by  the  conservative  principle  carried 
to  excess.  There  has  been  no  dread  of  innovation  ex- 
hibited in  modern  times.  The  substitution  of  the  col- 
legiate for  a  more  general  university  scheme  of  instruc- 
tion is  the  result  of  a  modern  revolution,  altogether 
subsequent  to  the  era  of  the  Reformation,  and  no  small 
part  of  it  is  a  creation  of  yesterday,  devised  at  the  close 
of  the  eighteenth,  and  only  carried  out  since  the  com- 
mencement of  the  nineteenth,  century. 

In  order  to  understand  how  the  colleges,  or  a  few 
private  corporations,  obtained  their  ascendency  over 
our  two  great  national  institutions,  it  is  necessary  to 
revert  to  the  history  of  those  early  ages  when  the 
European  universities  originated.  It  appears  that 
there  was  often  a  prodigious  concourse  of  students  to 
those  seats  of  learning  where  the  public  teachers  ac- 
quired celebrity.  We  may  refuse  to  credit  some  old 
chroniclers,  who  reckon  the  number  at  Oxford  and 
elsewhere  at  ten,  twenty,  and  even  thirty  thousand  ; 
but  it  is  certain  that  the  scholars  were  often  so  crowded 
together  in  small  towns,  as  to  be  exposed  to  great  hard- 
ships, owing  to  the  exorbitant  price  demanded  for  board 
and  lodging.  Benevolent  individuals,  who  commis- 
erated the  sufferings  of  the  poorer  students,  were  in- 
duced from  time  to  time  to  found  houses,  where  they 


220 


COLLEGIATE    CORPORATIONS. 


Chap.  xiii. 


might  obtain  accominotlation,  and  sometimes  hoard, 
free  of  expense.  Those  who  were  not  on  such  foun- 
dations were  required,  whether  graduates  or  under- 
graduates, to  belong  to  some  Hall,  or  Inn,  the  head  of 
which  was  usually  elected  by  the  scholar?,  and  ap- 
proved of  by  the  chancellor  of  the  university,  or  liis 
deputy.  As  a  large  part  of  the  students  were  boys, 
corresponding  in  age  to  those  now  educated  at  our 
public  schools,  they  were  placed  under  the  special 
guardianship  of  some  tutor,  who  was  expected  to  look 
to  their  orderly  behaviour,  their  religious  exercises,  and 
even,  as  appears  by  the  old  statutes,  to  "  see  that  they 
conformed  to  academical  rules  in  regard  to  matters  of 
external  appearance,  such  as  their  clothes,  boots,  and 
hair."  It  was  the  duty  of  the  head  of  each  house  to 
see  that  the  tutors  were  fit  for  their  office,  and  to  take 
care  that  the  pupils  attended  the  lectures  of  the  public 
readers,  or  Masters  of  Arts,  who  gave  lectures  in  the 
Schools. 

On  the  Continent,  the  houses  founded  for  the  sup- 
port of  indigent  teachers  and  scholars  were  entirely 
subjected  to  the  authorities  of  their  respective  univer- 
sities; but  in  England  several  of  the  colleges  were 
governed  by  private  statutes,  over  which  the  university 
exercised  no  control.  Hence  they  had  often  interests 
apart  from  those  of  the  university  and  of  the  pubhc ; 
but  for  centuries  they  were  few"  in  number,  there  being 
only  three  colleges  in  Oxford  in  the  fourteenth  century; 
whereas  there  were  three  hundred  halls,  or  Ucensed 
boarding-houses,  each  sustained  by  the  private  contri- 
butions of  students.  At  length  the  Reformation  worked 
suddenly  a  complete  revolution  in  the  relative  position 
of  the  collegiate  corporations  and  the  academical  body 


Chap.  xtii.         COLLEGIATE    CORPORATIONS. 


221 


le  sup- 

ntirely 

luniver- 

|s  were 

iveisity 

te  rests 

mblic ; 

being 

Intury; 

censed 

Icontri- 

orked 

isition 

body 


at  large.     The  religious  schism  banished  many  stu- 
dents Avho  did  not  acquiesce  in  the  new  opinions.    The 
temper  of  Henry  the  Eighth  was  so  capricious  and 
uncertain,  and  the  policy  of  his  three  immediate  suc- 
cessors so  coiUradictory,  tliat  it  was  difFicult  to  know 
what  was  the  religion  by  law  established  for  the  cur- 
rent year ;  still  less  possible  to  calculate  what  would 
be    the   statutable   orthodoxy   for   the   year   ensuing. 
Reasonable   fears  were  also  entertained  that,   as  the 
monastic  property  had  been  confiscated,  the   endow- 
ments of  the  universities  might  not  long  be  spared,  so 
that  literature  and  the  church  were  uninviting  profes- 
sions,   whether  for  ambitious   or  conscientious  men.* 
The  halls,  depending  for  their  support  on  the  conflu- 
ence of  students,  were  ruined,  except  a   few   which 
were    connected   with    certain   colleges.      Land   and 
houses  fell  in  value  in  Oxibrd,  so  that  the  colleges  were 
able  to  purchase  considerable  property  from  the  im- 
poverished burghers  for  a  trifling  consideration.     Four 
new^  colleges  were  established  within  half  a  century 
subsequent  to   the   Reformation,   and   altogether   six 
during  the  sixteenth   century,  some  of  which   were 
built  on  the  sites  of  suppressed  monasteries,  or  on  land 
obtained  by  grants  from  the  crown,  or  purchased  for 
an  insignificant  pr'ce.     After  this  period,  only  one  col- 
lege was  founded — in  IGIO  ;  and  three  of  the  eight 
remaining  halls  changed  into  colleges,  in  1610,  1702, 
and  1710. 

*  For  many  details  respecting  the  early  constitution  of  the  univer- 
slties  of  Paris  and  Oxford,  and  the  subsequent  clianjyes  in  the  English 
Universiities,  see  an  article  by  Sir  William  Hamilton,  Bart.,  who  was 
educated  at  Oxford,  and  is  now  Professor  of  Logic  in  the  University 
of  Edinburgh,  Edin.  Review,  No.  xcvi.,  June,  1831. 

19* 


222 


HISTORY    OP 


Chap.  xiii. 


Oiij^inally  few  of  the  colleges  admitted  undergradu- 
ates not  on  the  foundation  ;  but  they  now  opened  their 
gates,  and  were  able  to  include  the  whole  academical 
population  within  their  walls,  by  which  they  obtained 
a  preponderating  weight  and  influence.  This  power, 
however,  might  have  been  defeated,  if  the  Earl  of 
Leicester,  chancellor  of  the  university,  had  not  obtained, 
in  1570,  an  exclusive  right  to  institute  new  halls, 
which  was  afterwards  by  statute  vested  in  his  succes- 
sors. As  the  chief  magistrate  acted  usually  in  concert 
with  the  heads  of  colleges,  it  was  henceforth  easy  for 
the  colleges  to  prevent  any  new  hall  from  interfering 
with  their  monopoly  ;  whereas,  previously  to  1570,  the 
establishment  of  p  litui  was  easy,  it  being  only  re- 
quired that  a  small  number  of  scholars  should  hire  a 
house,  find  caution  for  a  year's  rent,  and  choose  for 
principal  a  graduate  of  respectable  character.  The 
chancellor,  or  his  deputy,  could  not,  in  that  case,  refuse 
to  sanction  his  appointment. 

The  new  constitution,  procured  for  the  university 
by  Leicester,  was  considerably  modified  under  the 
chancellorship  of  Archbishop  Laud,  who  raised  the 
heads  of  houses  to  the  rank  of  a  public  body,  called 
the  Hebdomadal  Board,  to  whom  the  privilege  was 
given  of  proposing  new  laws  to  the  House  of  Convoca- 
tion. To  the  latter,  consisting  of  the  doctors  and  the 
masters  of  arts,  the  supreme  legislation  was  still  left, 
but  without  the  power  of  initiating  any  measures. 
The  heads  were,  by  the  constitution  of  their  colleges, 
almost  all  ecclesiastics,  and  chosen  from  among  the 
fellows  of  their  respective  colleges.  Their  election  was, 
therefore,  subject  to  all  the  disabilities  and  restrictions 
imposed  on  the  fellows  by  the  caprice  of  the  founder. 


Chap.  xiii. 


Chap.  xiii. 


ENGLISH    UMVERSITIES. 


223 


lergiadu- 
ncd  their 
ademical 

obtained 
lis  power, 

Earl  of 
obtained, 
!W  halls, 
s  succcs- 
n  concert 

easy  for 
iterfering" 
1570,  the 

only  re- 
dd hire  a 
hoose  for 
er.  The 
se,  refuse 

niversity 

ider   the 

lised  the 

y,  called 

ge  was 

bnvoca- 

and  the 

still  left, 

easures. 

colleges, 

3ng  the 

on  was, 

trictions 

founder. 


h 


Thus  two  new  elements,  the  preponderating  influence 
of  clerical  o\  er  lay  rulers,  and  the  fortuitous  restrictions 
invented  for  the  regulation  of  private  corporations,  en- 
tered suddenly,  and  as  it  were  accidentally,  into  the 
legislative  constitution  of  the  university. 

From  this  period,  it  was  almost  inevitable,  that  the 
predilections  of  men  of  one  profession,  and  the  private 
interests  of  certain  corporate  bodies,  should  modify,  if 
not  remodel,  the  whole  academical  system,  and  fre- 
quently prevail  over  interests  of  a  more  general  and 
national  character.  Soon  after  the  university  had  be- 
gun to  recover  from  the  shock  of  the  Reformation, 
several  new  readerships  and  professorships  were  en- 
dowed by  Laud,  and  several  others  in  the  next  cen- 
tury, afier  his  time,  in  aid  of  that  system  of  public 
instruction  in  the  schools,  which  had  been  conducted 
originally  by  certain  Masters  of  Arts,  who  were  re- 
quired to  read  and  expound  diifercnt  bubjccts.  The 
teaching  of  the  undergraduates  was  now,  therefore, 
divided  between  the  colleges  and  the  public  instructors 
appointed  by  the  university.  The  latter  would  have 
regained  their  former  ascendancy,  if  they  had  been 
supported  by  the  Heads  of  houses,  who  were  intrusted 
with  the  charge  of  watching  over  the  observance  of 
statutes,  and  all  " scholastic  improvements."  But  ihey 
(the  Heads)  no  longer  obliged  the  students  to  attend 
public  lectures  regularly  ;  and  they  frequently  allowed 
some  of  the  professors  to  desist  from  lecturing  altogether, 
which  many  of  them,  from  indolence,  and  from  finding 
their  nudionres  fall  oil"  were  disposed  to  do,  especially 
as  their  instructions  were  given  gratis.  Such  was  the 
ordinary  custom  in  the  old  universities ;  but  in  later 
times  it  had  been  found  that  this  arrangement  wa» 


224 


OXFORD — COLLEGE    TUTORS.        Chap.  xill. 


very  defective,  that  the  professors  were  neg^ligent,  and 
that  the  students  imdervahicd  what  cost  thcni  nothing, 
so  that  fees  were  permitted  to  be  exacted.  In  Oxford, 
however,  the  professors  were  supplanted,  in  respect  to 
these  fees,  by  the  college  tutor,  to  whom  a  large  part 
of  the  business  of  education  was  thus  gradually  trans- 
ferred. Had  a  dilferent  course  been  adopted,  the  pro- 
fessors, acquiring  in  many  cases  celebrity  in  their  re- 
spective departments,  and  devoted  permanently,  and 
often  enthusiastically,  to  the  sciences  they  taught, 
would  have  married  and  settled  for  life  in  Oxford  ; 
they  would  have  gained  an  ascendancy  over  the  minds 
of  the  students  and  the  younger  graduates  in  convo- 
cation ;  and  many  of  them  would  have  acquired  an 
European  reputation.  The  colleges  might  naturally 
feel  jealous  of  allowing  the  growth  of  such  a  counter- 
poise to  the  power  with  which  they  had  been  recently 
invested. 

When  the  old  machinery  was  thus  falling  into  dis- 
use, and  before  the  plan  of  college  tuition  was  fully 
organised,  the  academical  discipline  appears  to  have 
been  extremely  lax,  and  the  provision  for  education 
defective  in  the  extreme.  It  was  often  difficult  to  find 
a  college  tutor  competent  to  undertake  the  office,  and 
there  was  occasionally  only  one  or  two  of  the  resident 
fellows  willing  to  accept  of  it.  Instead  of  these  im- 
portant places  being  open  to  a  free  and  fair  competi- 
tion, we  may  say  that  they  were  often  held  by  self- 
appointed  teachers.  A  regulation  was  made,  that  all 
the  undergraduates  should  lodge  within  the  walls  of 
some  college,  which  had  the  effect  of  preventing  stu- 
dents from  freely  selecting  those  tutors  who  had  the 
highest  reputation,  as  rooms  within  the  walls  were 


ClUP.  xiil.      EXAMINATION    STATUTE   OF    1800.  225 


and 


i 


soon  filled,  and  no  overflow  was  allowed  of  pupils  lodg- 
ing ill  the  town.  The  enlbiccmcnt  of  this  law  was 
said  to  have  been  jealously  watched  by  some  colleges, 
which  would  otherwise  have  been  all  but  deserted, 
towards  the  close  of  the  last  century.  The  numerous 
scholarships  and  other  endowments  of  the  university, 
the  college  livings,  and  the  academical  degrees  required 
as  qualifications  for  entering  holy  orders,  rendered  the 
university  very  independent  of  public  opinion  ;  and 
whether  it  taught  nothing  efficiently,  or  failed  to  ac- 
commodate its  form  of  instruction  to  the  progress  and 
spirit  of  the  age,  it  could  never  apprehend  a  serious 
diminution  of  students. 

Occasionally,  there  were  examinations  and  a  revival 
of  studious  habits  in  a  particular  college,  or  some  pro- 
fessor gave  a  popular  course  of  lectures,  and  drew  large 
audiences.  Thus  Bradley,  the  famous  astronomer, 
delivered,  between  the  years  1716  and  1700,  to  a  class 
of  pupils  averaging  57  in  number,  lectures  on  Natural 
Philosophy,  not  in  Latin,  tis  had  been  the  old  practice, 
but  in  English.  Ikit  the  general  indolence  of  the  in- 
structors, and  the  idleness  and  dissipation  of  the  young 
men,  became  so  notorious  and  flagrant  towards  the 
close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  that  a  reform  was 
loudly  called  for,  and  the  governing  body  became 
deeply  impressed  with  a  sense  of  its  expediency.  Many 
plans  were  devised  for  carrying  it  into  effect.  As  the 
annual  or  terminal  examinations  in  several  colleges 
had  been  found  most  useful  in  maintaining  orderly 
habits  among  the  young  juen,  it  was  proposed  to  im- 
prove the  public  examinations,  which  had  become  a 
mere  form,  and  to  compel  every  one  to  pass  them  be- 
fore obtaining  his  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts.    Honours 


w 


'     ! 


226 


OXFORD. 


Chap,  zin 


were  to  be  awarded  to  those  who  distinguished  them- 
selves. 

It  was  now  evident  that  the  shape  in  which  this 
new  statute  was  framed  would  deternune  what  studies 
should  henceforth  be  encouraged  or  discouraged  in  the 
university.  It  was  clearly  pointed  out,  at  the  time, 
that  all  those  subjects  which  could  not  lead  to  academ- 
ical distinctions  would  be  virtually  proscribed  ;  and  that 
the  well-known  maxim  of  our  lawyers  in  the  interpre- 
tation of  statutes  would  hold  good  in  this  case,  "  De 
non  apparentibus  et  de  non  existentibus  eadem  est 
ratio."  Whatever  science  was  omitted  in  the  list  of 
studies  selected  for  the  trial  of  strength  would  be  hence- 
forth not  merely  shghted,  but  virtually  blotted  out  of 
the  academical  course.  Academical  honours  were 
here  no  empty  bubbles',  but  might  be  expected  to  lead 
to  fellowships,  tutorships,  livings,  and  other  solid  ad- 
vantages. If  the  Heads  of  Houses  and  Members  of 
Convocation  had  been  simply  legislating  for  national 
objects,  and  had  not  been  the  representatives  of  private 
and  collegiate  interests,  which  were  not  always  iden- 
tical v/ith  those  of  the  public,  it  would  have  been  easy 
to  devise  a  comprehensive  system  of  examinations,  con- 
sisting of  several  boards,  to  which  the  professors,  as 
well  as  tutors,  would  have  been  appointed,  in  stricter 
accordance  with  the  spirit,  and  even  letter,  of  the  old 
Statutes,  than  the  new  law  which  was  then  enacted. 
But  this  might  soon  have  altered  entirely  the  relative 
position  in  which  the  college  tutors  now  stood  to  the 
public  readers  and  professors.  The  latter  would  soon 
have  acquired  greater  consequence  in  convocation; 
and  had  such  a  measure  been  proposed  by  the  Heb- 
domadal Board  it  would  probably  have  been  lost.     Ac- 


^ 


Chap.  xm.    EXAMINATION    STATUTE    OP   1300. 


227 


De 


as 


I 


cordingly,  it  was  soon  found  that  the  new  '-'xamination 
statute  of  the  year  1800  was  to  be  worked  by  the  col- 
lege tutors,  young  men  for  the  most  part  about  thirty 
years  of  age ;  and  such  being  the  case,  no  one  can 
deny  that  studies  embracing  the  Greek  and  Roman 
writers  on  history,  philosophy,  poetry,  logic,  rhetoric, 
and  ethics,  besides  Christian  theology,  and  the  ele- 
ments of  mathematics,  was  as  extensive  a  range  as 
was  compatible  with  such  an  executive.  If  they  erred, 
their  error  certainly  consisted  in  enlarging  the  circle  of 
subjects  far  beyond  the  capacity  of  the  college  tutor,  be 
his  talents  ever  so  great.  The  legislators  especially 
displayed  discretion  in  excluding  from  the  schools  all 
the  more  progressive  branches  of  knowledge ;  for,  in 
order  to  be  a  safe  guide  in  directing  the  opinions  of  a 
pupil,  or  teaching  what  is  known  in  such  branches, 
liable  as  they  are  to  be  modified  from  year  to  year,  by 
new  facts,  discoveries,  and  investigations,  the  preceptor 
must  have  leisure  to  devote  his  mind  exclusively  to  one 
subject. 

The  new  statute  did  not  pass  without  a  severe  strug- 
gle. The  rector  of  Lincoln  College,  in  parficular,  op- 
posed it,  as  a  measure  that  would  extinguish  all  "  thirst 
of  knowledge."  "There  would  henceforth,"  he  said, 
"  be  no  university  at  all,  but  a  system  of  cramming 
and  partial  teaching,  after  which  the  student  would 
go  out  into  the  world  with  a  narrow  mind  and  darker 
understanding." 

The  necessity,  however,  of  preparing  for  the  com- 
pulsory examination,  before  taking  a  degree,  worked 
immediately  a  salutary  change  in  the  habits  and  moral 
conduct  of  the  idler  students.  The  more  clever  and 
ambitious  amongst  them  began  to  be  excited  by  the 


228 


OXFORD  EXAMINATIONS. 


Chap,  xiil 


I'i 


h: 


competition  for  honours  ;  a  marked  improvement  was 
soon  apparent  in  academical  discipline ;  the  university 
gained  in  public  favour,  and  the  number  of  students 
increased.  The  classes  even  of  some  of  the  professors 
were  strengthened ;  but  this  eflect  was  of  short  dura- 
tion. It  was  soon  found  that  the  honours  awarded  at 
the  examinations  led  to  fellowships  and  tutorships ;  and 
the  honourable  rivalry  of  many  of  the  colleges  induced 
them  to  throw  open  their  fellowships  and  scholarships 
much  more  freely  than  formerly  to  candidates  of  the 
highest  merit ;  the  standard  of  merit,  however,  being, 
for  the  most  part,  measured  by  the  new  examinations 
in  the  schools.  New  methods  were  from  time  to  time 
invented  for  classifying  the  youths  according  to  their 
intellectual  qualifications.  In  1807,  students  who  dis- 
tinguished themselves  were  arranged  in  two  classes,  in 
1809  in  three,  and  in  1826  in  four.  A  preliminary 
examination,  called  the  responsions,  or  '•  little  go,"  was 
introduced  at  the  end  of  the  first  two  years,  or  in  the 
middle  of  the  student's  residence  at  Oxford.  The  ex- 
aminations for  degrees  were  made  more  and  more 
stringent,  and  emulation  at  length  stimulated  to  so 
high  a  pitch,  that  health  was  often  sacrificed  in  the 
eflbrt  to  gain  the  prize.  Useful  habits  of  application 
were  often  acquired,  but  the  system  was  not  calculated 
to  foster  a  love  of  knowledge  for  its  own  sake.  To 
feome  there  was  even  danger  of  injury  both  bodily  and 
mental ;  for  if  they  succeeded,  they  were  tempted  to 
believe  that  they  had  already  achieved  something 
great ;  if  they  failed,  their  abilities  were  underrated, 
both  by  themselves  and  their  contemporaries. 

Another  important  revolution  now  took  place.     As 
the  business  of  education  had  previously  passed  from 


Chap.  xiii. 


OXFORD    I'll IV ATE   TUTOUsJ. 


229 


the  piil)lic  icadern  and  professors  to  the  college  tutors, 
so  the  latter  were  now  in  no  small  degree  superseded 
by  the  private  tutors  or  ''  crammers."  These  were 
graduates  cho.sen  by  llio  young  men  tliemsi'lves,  at  an 
expense  of  10/.  or  50/.  a  year,  to  read  with  them,  both 
in  term-time  and  vacation,  and  prepare  them  for  the 
examination.  An  Oxford  tutor  informed  me  that,  in 
the  years  1810  and  1811,  no  less  than  250,  or  one 
lifth  of  the  resident  students,  procured  this  kind  of  as- 
sistance, the  aggregate  sum  paid  by  them  amounting 
to  more  than  10,000/.  a  year  !  These  young  teachers 
watch  tlie  examinations,  are  acquainted  with  the  style 
of  the  (|uestions,  whether  vivd  voce  or  on  paper,  and 
often  witli  the  pecidiar  views  of  the  examiner.  It  is 
their  business  to  prevent  their  pupil  from  wasting  his 
strength  on  topics  not  iilvcly  to  be  adverted  to,  and 
often  to  enable  him  to  get  by  rote  answers  to  certain 
interrogatories.  The  students  are  frecpiently  unable 
to  obtain  tliis  aid  from  the  college  tutor,  whose  system 
of  lecturing  is  more  general,  and  who  cannot  direct  his 
attention  to  the  individual  wants  and  capacities  of 
every  pupil.  Tlie  imdergraduates,  therefore,  may  be 
required  to  attend,  between  ten  and  one  o'clock,  the 
lectures  of  the  college  tutors.  The  next  two  hours 
(from  one  to  three)  are  generally  occupied  by  the  pri- 
vate tutors,  comprising  that  portion  of  the  day  during 
which  the  professors  are  by  statute  required  to  lecture. 
At  three  o'clock,  it  is  high  time  for  the  young  men  to 
seek  recreation  and  exercise  ;  so  that  all  the  youths, 
especially  the  cleverest  ones,  are  so  entirely  absorbed  in 
a  routine  of  study  connected  with  the  examinations, 
that  the  professorial  class-rooms  must  unavoidably  be 
abandoned.     Bachelors  of  arts,  and  other  graduates, 

20 


230 


PRIVATE   TUTOUM    AT    CAMnniDCiE.   Ciiap.  xiil. 


had  been  hcroloforo  in  the  hiihit  of  attciuUnfj  pubUc 
lectures;  but  most  of  th«'ni  now  became  enp^rossed 
with  the  new  and  hiciative  business  of  cranmiinjif. 

We  learn  from  J)r.  Peacock,  now  Dean  of  Ely,  for 
many  years  an  emiiit:nt  tutor  at  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge, that  in  that  university,  al^o,  a  similar  revolution 
took  place  nearly  at  the  same  time.*  "  A  large  propor- 
tion," he  says,  '-of  all  the  students,  industrious  or  idle, 
rich  or  poor,  resort  to  private  tutors,  to  whom  they  pay, 
on  an  average,  about  4()A  a  year.  These  teachers," 
he  continues,  "  are  young  and  inexperienced,  and  not 
competent  to  convey  enlarged  views"  to  their  pupils. 
The  labour  imposed  on  them  is  too  absorbing  and  se- 
vere to  allow  of  the  simultaneous  prosecution  of  origi- 
nal studies ;  and  "  this  unhappy  system  has  contribu- 
ted, more  than  any  other  cause,  to  the  very  general, 
and,  in  some  respects,  just  complaints,  which  have  been 
made  of  late  years,  of  the  paucity  of  works  of  learning 
and  research  which  had  issued  from  the  University'of 
Cambridge." 

And  here  I  may  observe,  that  it  is  often  the  boast 
of  writers  who  extol  our  university  system  above  that 
of  other  countries,  that  we  promote  liberal  studies,  and 
do  not  condescend  to  cpialify  students  for  a  lucrative 
profession  or  trade.  But  what  is  the  real  fact  ?  Do 
not  tlie  majority  of  the  ablest  students  toil  at  Latin, 
Greek,  and  mathematics,  with  purely  professional  ob- 
jects 7  Are  they  not  preparing  themselves  for  becom- 
ing private  tutors,  schoolmasters,  and  college-tutors ; 
expecting  to  combine  these  avocations  with  fellow- 
sliips,  or  with  clerical  duties?    Are  not  the  things  they 

*  See  his  excellent  work  on  the  Statutes  of  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge, p.  156. 


1 


for 


boast 

■ 

e  that 

1 

s,  and 

■ 

iiative 

■ 

?    Do 

1 

^atin, 

f'-',. 

al  ob- 

1 

ecoin- 

itois ; 

1 

ellow- 

■ 

i  they 

1 

rCora- 

1 

Chap.  xiii. 


PllIVATi:    TUTORS. 


231 


loarn  rcfrardod  as  tlio  menus  of  carnlnir  a  livelihood,  or 
what  the  Germans  call  ''  nrodstudien,"  in  plain  En;?- 
lirfh,  to  "  make  the  pot  boil  /'  That  some  students 
should  be  t|iiaiifyini(  themselves  at  the;  univerrjily  to 
become  masters  in  our  pul)lic  schools  is  highly  desira- 
ble;  and  it  would  be  well  if  the  station  in  society  of 
the  schoolmaster,  apart  from  any  adventitious  aid  de- 
rived from  uniting  with  it  the  clerical  fimction,  ranked 
as  high  in  En<jfland  as  it  docs  in  Ciermany  and  the 
New-England  Jstates  ;  but  why  shoidd  not  the  utilita- 
rianism of  our  universities  comprehend  c(Hially,  within 
the  sphere  of  its  educational  training,  those  branches 
of  general  knowledge  which  are  e(|ually  essential  to 
the  future  statesman,  divine,  lawyer,  physician,  and 
men  of  other  liberal  callings  l 

I  am  aware  that  it  may  be  said,  in  regard  to  "cram- 
mers,' that,  under  every  system,  some  kind  of  private 
tuition  will  be  required,  and  it  will  be  asked,  whether 
the  assistants,  under  a  professorial  plan  of  instruction, 
would  not  be  equally  kept  back  in  the  improvement 
of  their  own  minds?  Certainly  not — they  would  di- 
vide themselves  at  once  into  as  many  sections  as  there 
are  departments  of  study  recognised  in  the  public  ex- 
aminations. They  would  devote  their  minds  steadily 
to  subjects  connected  with  theology,  or  with  law,  or 
niedlcine,  or  engineering,  or  literary  criticism,  or  ap- 
plied mathematics,  or  other  branches.  Occasionally 
they  would  lecture  for  the  professor,  who,  if  worthy  of 
his  charge,  must  advance  with  his  science,  and  not  be 
ignorant  of  new  discoveries  and  theories.  Like  him, 
they  could  not  remain  stationary.  They  would  aspire 
in  due  time  to  fill  his  place,  or  some  chair  in  another 
university.    Such  private  tutors,  whether  lay  or  clerical, 


232 


PROPOSED    REFORM 


Chap.  xiii. 


would  not  be  found,  at  the  expiration  of  ten  years  of 
hard  and  painful  labour,  precisely  at  tlie  point  from 
which  they  set  out  immediately  after  taking  their  first 
degree. 

In  the  year  1S39,  a  last  and  most  vigorous  attempt 
was  made  at  Oxford  to  restore  the  functions  of  the  pro- 
fessorial body,  which  had  now  become  contracted  with- 
in the  narrowest  limits.  Tlie  professors  of  Experimen- 
tal Philosophy,  Comparative  Anatomy,  Chemistry, 
Mineralogy,  Geology,  Botany,  Geometry,  and  Astrono- 
my, many  of  them  well  known  in  the  literary  and  sci- 
entific world,  sent  in  a  representation  to  the  heads  of 
Houses,  in  which  they  declared  their  inability  to  dis- 
charge the  duties  they  had  undertaken,  notwithstand- 
ing their  unabated  zeal  and  devotion.  They  accom- 
panied their  petition  with  a  printed  statistical  table, 
showing  how  the  number  of  their  classes  had  fallen  off 
annually,  during  a  period  in  which,  as  they  truly  ob- 
served, the  branches  of  knowledge  taught  by  them 
were  rising  in  popular  favour  and  importance.  It  ap- 
peared by  their  table,  that  the  anatomy  class  had  dwin- 
dled between  the  years  1819  and  1838  to  less  than 
half,  and  that  of  astronomy  to  one  fifth  of  its  original 
niunbers.  The  same  had  happened  to  the  class  of 
chemistry,  between  1822  and  1838,  many  others  hav- 
ing declined  in  the  Uke  ratio.  The  petitioners  observed 
that,  if  no  change  were  made  in  the  examination  stat- 
ute, their  usefulness  as  professors  was  at  an  end. 

A  majority  of  the  heads  of  Houses  were  favourable 
to  a  reform,  and  they  consequently  proposed  a  new  ex- 
amination statute,  in  which  there  was  a  provision  re- 
quiring attendance  on  at  least  hco  series  of,  professorial 
lecturep,  as  a  preUminary  qualification  for  the  bachelor 


Chap.  xiii. 


AT    OXFORD    IN    1839. 


233 


liginal 

tlass  of 

IS  hav- 

)seived 

|)n  Stat- 

|)uiable 
i\v  ex- 
lion  re- 
issoiial 
Ichelor 


of  arts'  degree.  The  subjects  of  the  various  professors' 
lectures  were  classified  under  two  heads,  and  one  course 
was  to  be  selected  by  the  student  from  each  division. 
The  professors  were  recjuired  to  keep  a  register  of  at- 
tendance, and  give  certificates.  Although  a  new  board 
of  exaniiners  to  bestow  honorary  distinctions  was  not 
part  of  this  plan,  the  measure  might  eventually  have 
led  to  this  and  other  improvements. 

But  it  was  now  too  late — reform  was  beyond  the 
power  of  the  Hebdomadal  Board.  Several  academical 
generations  had  grown  up  under  the  new  order  of 
things.  The  collegiate  and  private  tutors  were  inter- 
ested in  opposing  the  new  provisions,  and  they  were 
accordingly  rejected  in  convocation.  Yet  while  they 
threw  out  that  part  of  the  proposed  statute  which 
would  have  gone  far  towards  reviving  the  professorial 
chairs,  they  passed  another  part  requiring  the  pro- 
fessors of  Astronomy,  Experimental  Philosophy,  Chem- 
istry, Geology,  Mineralogy,  Anatomy,  Botany,  Medi- 
cine, Civil  Law,  English  Law,  Greek,  Arabic,  Sanscrit, 
Anglo-Saxon,  Poetry,  Modern  History,  and  Political 
Economy,  to  deUver  regular  courses  of  lectures.  They 
were,  in  fact,  bound  not  only  by  ancient  statutes  to  re- 
quire the  teachers  above  enumerated  faithfully  to  dis- 
charge their  duty,  but  in  modern  times,  or  since  the 
examination  statute  of  1800,  they  had  sanctioned  the 
foundation  of  new  chairs,  such  as  Experimental  Phi- 
losophy, Mineralogy,  Geology,  Political  Economy,  and 
Sanscrit,  and  had  accepted  annual  grants  from  the 
Crown  to  endow  certain  reader-hips.  In  homage, 
therefore,  to  the  moral  obligations  they  had  incurred,  not 
to  render  these  new  and  old  foundations  nugatory,  they 
continued  to  exact  an  outward  conformity  to  the  stat- 


234 


CHANGES    OP    SYSTEM 


Chap. 


XIII. 


utes,  by  enforcing  the  delivery  of  lectures,  the  efficiency 
of  which  they  allowed  other  parts  of  their  system  en- 
tirely to  defeat.  Their  conduct  reminds  us  of  the  orders 
issued  by  Charles  the  Fifth  to  offer  up  prayers  through- 
out Spain  for  the  deliverance  of  the  Pope,  Avhile  he 
suffered  his  army  to  retain  him  prisoner  in  the  Castle 
of  St.  Angelo. 

It  mu^t  not  be  inferred,  however,  from  the  preceding 
observations,  that  I  assume  that  the  mojority  of  the 
members  of  Convocation  are  not  men  of  high  principle, 
and  anin)ated  with  a  conscientious  desire  of  dii^^charg- 
ing  faithfully  their  public  duties.  They  and  their  pre- 
decessors probably  did  not  at  any  moment  deliberately 
plan  or  avow  to  themselves  the  line  of  policy  which 
they  have  followed  out  so  systematically,  and  with  so 
much  unity  of  purpose.  The  judgment  of  each  gen- 
eration has  been  constantly  biassed  by  the  same  dis- 
turbing causes  (the  collegiate  and  clerical  interests), 
which,  like  a  current  steadily  setting  one  way,  has  in- 
sensibly carried  the  whole  academical  body  out  of  its 
true  course.  In  conformity  to  these  interests,  the  origi- 
nal constitution  has  been  gradually  modified,  and  the 
system,  when  changed,  has  formed  the  minds  of  the 
succeeding  generation,  preparing  it  for  new  innovations, 
all  conceived  in  the  same  spirit.  If  any  single  individ- 
ual can  be  charged  with  a  deliberate  purpose  of  alter- 
ing, essentially,  the  ancient  constitution  of  the  univer- 
sity, it  is  probably  Archbishop  Laud. 

The  year  1839  was  memorable  in  Europe  for  another 
event,  tending  to  prove  how  unpropitious  to  the  cultiva- 
tion of  the  physical  sciences  is  the  ecclesiastical  spirit, 
whenever  it  obtains  an  undue  power  of  interference 
with  academical  institutions.     In  the  year  alluded  to, 


HAP.  XIII. 


Chap.  xiii. 


AT   OXFORD. 


235 


the  first  "  congress"  of  scientific  men  took  place  in  Italy. 
It  assembled  at  Pisa,  under  the  auspices  of  the  enUght- 
ened  prince  who  now  reigns  in  Tuscany.  The  Pope 
interdicted  all  the  professors  of  his  colleges  of  Rome  and 
Bologna,  many  of  whom  were  prepared  to  co-operate 
warmly  with  the  new  association,  from  attending  it. 
The  papal  prohibition  was  continued  at  the  subsequent 
meetings  at  Turin,  Florence,  Milan,  and  elsewhere. 
Nevertheless,  the  congress  llouiished,  and,  in  spite  of 
the  Pontiff's  opposition,  drew  together  many  of  the 
most  distinguished  men  from  all  parts  of  Eurojje, 
and  of  Italy,  beyond  the  confines  of  the  States 
of  the  Church.  It  has  also  given  to  the  world  five 
costly  volumes  of  valuable  scientific  memoirs,  which, 
but  for  such  patronage,  might  have  remained  unpub- 
lished to  this  day. 

Doubtless  the  vote  of  the  Oxford  Convocation  in 
1839  was  influenced  by  various  motives ;  among  others, 
a  conscientious  contempt  for  that  sham  professorial 
system  which  the  graduates  had  so  long  contrasted  with 
a  reality,  in  the  form  of  compulsory  tutorial  lectures 
and  examinations,  leading  to  degrees,  and  often  follow- 
ed by  fellowships,  livings,  prebendal  stalls,  and  bishop- 
rics. In  addition  to  these  causes,  it  has  been  very 
generally  understood  that  many,  both  of  the  college  and 
private  tutors,  were  opposed  to  the  cultivation  of  the  phys- 
ical sciences  on  principle,  on  account  of  their  alleged  irre- 
ligious tendency.  No  one  who  reads  some  of  the  arti- 
cles written  by  men  who  were  fellows  or  tutors  at 
Oxford,  in  the  British  Critic,  against  the  "  British  Asso- 
ciation for  the  Promotion  of  Science,"  can  wonder  that 
such  reports  were  credited,  or  that  they  provoked,  from 
a  prelate  educated  at  Oxford,  the  remark  that  "  men 


I 


i 


236 


OPPOSITION    TO    PROPOSED 


Chap.  xiii. 


who  entertain  such  fears  seem  to  forget  that  the  book 
of  Nature  and  the  book  of  Revelation  were  both  written 
by  tbe  same  Author." 

Men  are  prone  to  undervahie  those  branches  of 
knowledge  which  are  foreign  to  their  own  pursuits ; 
and  if  physicians,  or  lawyers,  or  civil  engineers,  had 
usurped  as  decided  an  ascendency  in  the  legislation  of 
a  university,  as  the  clerical  graduates  have  now  acqui- 
red at  Oxford,  complaints  as  loud  and  well  founded 
might  have  been  heard,  that  a  due  share  of  attention 
was  not  bestowed  on  studies  connected  with  theology. 
In  this  spirit,  therefore,  it  was  attempted  to  mix  up  re- 
ligious instruction  with  the  teaching  of  other  sulijects. 
By  some  tutors  it  was  held  desirable  that  all  ethics, 
metaphysics,  and  philosophy  should  be  "  christianized." 

The  practice  of  taking  up  for  the  examinations  for 
honours  such  works  as  Butler's  Analogy  and  Sermons 
had  been  encouraged  after  the  jear  1830,  wlien  a 
statute  had  passed  "  that  the  philosophy  of  the  ancients 
might  be  illustrated  in  the  schools,  'ex  ncotericorum 
scriptis,'  or  by  the  writings  of  the  moderns."  This  and 
otber  changes  had  opened  the  door  for  considerable 
modifications  in  the  course  of  academical  study,  and 
had  given  a  new  turn  to  the  thoughts  of  many  of  the 
most  rising  and  talented  young  men.  It  should  be  re- 
membered that  the  last  ten  years  has  been  the  era  of 
the  Tractarian  movement  at  Oxford,  and  the  active 
intellect  of  the  university  has  been  for  the  most  part 
absorbed  in  theological  controversy.  He  who  aspired 
to  honours  was  bound  in  prudence  to  consider  that  his 
young  judge,  the  arbiter  of  his  academical  fate,  might 
probably  be  an  advocate  of  the  views  set  forth  in  some 
one  or  more  of  the  Tracts  for  the  Times.     He  might 


ClIAP.    XIII. 


REFORM    AT    OXFORD. 


237 


Imight 

some 

inight 


be  one  who  was  fully  impressed  with  the  dogma  that 
"  ethics  unconnected  with  the  church  is  a  fundamental 
fallacy  ;"  that  "  man  without,  the  church  has  no  right  to 
educate  man* ;"  that  "  youth  is  too  apt  to  delight  in  the 
inductive,  instead  of  the  deductive,  reasoning  ;" — "  to 
prefer  novelty  to  antiquity,"  investigation  to  obedience 
to  authority,  &c. 

As  an  example  of  the  deductive  process,  as  applied  to 
my  own  favourite  science,  by  a  college  tutor  and  pub- 
lic examiner  of  this  period,  1  may  cite  a  passage  from 
lectures  delivered  in  the  university  at  the  era  under 
consideration,  and  since  published  : — 

"  A  geologist,  deeply  impressed  with  the  mystery  of 
aptism,  by  which  a  '  new  creature,'  kuh/i)  Krhn,  is  form- 
ed, by  means  of  water  and  fire,  would  never  have  fall- 
en into  the  absurdities  of  accounting  for  the  formation 
of  the  globe  solely  by  water  or  solely  by  fire.  He  would 
not  have  maintained  either  a  Vulcanian  or  a  Neptu- 
nian theory."t  The  reader  may  well  imagine,  that,  if 
other  departments  of  science  were  "  christianized"  after 
the  hke  fashion,  the  scholar  might  run  some  risk  of 
emerging  into  the  world,  from  his  academical  career, 
with  his  reasoning  powers  enfeebled,  and  his  intellects 
mystified. 

But  to  conclude  our  historical  sketch.  After  the  year 
1839,  we  may  consider  three-fourths  of  the  sciences, 
still  nominally  taught  at  Oxford,  to  have  been  virtual- 
ly exiled  from  the  Univeisity.  The  class  roonjs  of  the 
professors  were  some  of  them  entirely,  others  nearly, 
deserted. — Chemistry  and  botany  attracted,  between 
the  years  1840  and  1844,  from  three  to  seven  students ; 

*  See  Sewcll's  Christian  Morals,  cli.  iv.  and  x. 
t  Ibid.  ch.  xxii. 


238 


LECTURES    ABANDONED. 


Chap.  xiii. 


il 


I!! 


i 


;•! 


geometry,  astronomy,  and  experimental  philosophy, 
scarcely  more  ;  niineralojry  and  geology,  still  taught  by 
the  same  proCosaor  who,  liftecn  years  before,  had  at- 
tracted crowded  audiences,  from  ten  to  twelve  ;  politi- 
cal economy  still  fewer  ;  even  ancient  history  and  poe- 
try scarcely  commanded  an  audience  ;  and,  strange  to 
say,  in  a  coimtry  with  whose  destinies  those  of  India 
are  so  closely  bound  up,  the  first  of  Asiatic  scholars 
gave  lectures  to  one  or  two  pupils,  and  these  might 
have  been  absent,  had  not  the  cherished  hope  of  a  Bo- 
den  scholarship  for  Sanscrit  induced  them  to  attend. 

As  if  to  complete  the  cycle  of  change,  and  to  cause 
the  system  to  depart  as  widely  as  possible  from  the 
original  university,  which  secured  for  the  students  the 
services  of  public  and  permanent  teachers,  men  of  ma- 
ture age  and  acquirements,  and  often  highly  gifted, 
the  Oxford  tuition  now  fell,  from  year  to  year,  into  the 
hands  of  younger  graduates,  whether  in  the  capacity 
of  private  tutors  or  examiners.  Several  causes  had 
concurred  to  accelerate  the  promotion  of  college  fel- 
lows. Their  number  was  still  the  same,  not  having 
increased  with  church  extension,  and  the  multiplica- 
tion of  new  schools  in  a  growing  population.  It  con- 
sequently became  so  dillicult  in  many  colleges  to  choose 
for  tutors,  fellows  who  were  not  manifestly  too  young, 
that,  to  remedy  the  evil,  several  heads  of  Houses  wisely 
permitted  men  who  had  forfeited  their  fellowship  by 
marriage  to  continue  as  tutors.  It  would  appear,  from 
the  Oxford  Calendar  for  1835,  thot  no  less  than  seven 
of  the  Colleges,  and  four  of  the  Halls,  have  been  driven 
to  this  resource.  Nevertheless,  the  majority  of  the  body 
of  public  examiners  is  often  under  the  age  of  thirty,  and 
Eome  of  them  only  twenty-five  years  old  !    They  go  out 


Vl 


Chap.  xiii. 


CAMBRIDGE. 


239 


of  oflfice  in  succession,  after  serving  for  two  years.  On 
this  fluctuating  body  of  young  men,  rcspout^ible  to  no 
one  for  their  decisions,  whether  in  passing  students  for 
degrees,  or  in  awarding  honours,  a  body  liaving  the 
power  of  modifying  at  their  caprice  the  whole  style 
and  tenour  of  the  public  examinations,  the  direction 
of  academical  education  in  this  great  country  has  prac- 
tically devolved ! 

At  Cambridge,  the  collegiate  influence  has,  since  the 
Reformation,  caused  the  university  to  pass  gradually 
through  nearly  all  the  san\e  phases  as  at  Oxford. 
Here,  also,  the  transference  of  the  business  of  instruc- 
tion from  the  public  and  permanent  to  the  collegiate 
and  temporary  teacher,  has  coincided  precisely,  in  point 
of  time,  with  greater  strictness  in  tlic  examinations, 
and  moie  studious  habits  and  better  discipline  among 
the  undergraduates.  It  is  natural  that,  owing  to  this 
coincidence,  a  false  notion  should  be  engendered,  that 
the  subdivision  of  labour  amongst  a  well  organized  body 
of  professors  is  less  effective  than  the  method  of  college 
tuition. 

It  might,  perhaps,  have  been  expected  that  such  a 
subdivision  would  have  been  carried  farther  at  Cam- 
bridge, in  consequence  of  more  than  half  the  students 
being  members  ol  two,  out  of  seventeen,  colleges  ; 
namely.  Trinity  and  iSt.  John's.  These  noble  foun- 
dations contain,  each  of  them,  from  400  to  500  under- 
graduates, and  might  almost  be  regarded,  from  their 
numerical  strength,  as  universities  of  themselves.  But 
although  tlie  fellowships  in  both  of  them  are  awarded 
to  merit,  the  educational  functions  must  be,  compara- 
tively speaking,  of  secondary  importance  to  the  fellow- 
tutor  ;  for,  being  almost  invariably  a  clergyman,  his 


r 


240 


PROFESSORIAL    LECTURES 


Chap.  xiii. 


highest  hope  of  future  preferment  is  not  in  the  Univer- 
sity, but  in  the  Church.  The  proportion  of  students 
intending  to  take  orders  is  not  po  large  here  as  at  Ox- 
ford, and  they  are  not  required  to  subscrilje,  on  matric- 
ulation, any  fornuila  of  religious  belief,  so  that  Roman 
Catholics  and  dissenters  from  the  Church  of  England 
can  study  here,  and  obtain  academical  honours,  though 
not  degrees.  The  responsible  duty  of  conducting  the 
public  examinations  is  even  here  in  the  hands  of  very 
young  men,  though  two  of  the  mathematical  professors 
assist  in  awarding  the  Smith's  Prize,  the  highest  ma- 
thematical honour ;  and  the  professor  of  Creek  and 
the  public  orator,  presumed  to  be  a  fust-ratc  Latin 
scholar,  preside  in  the  examination  for  the  Chancel- 
lor's medal  for  classics. 

Very  recently  at  Cambridge,  all  branches  of  know- 
ledge taught  by  the  professors — in  a  word,  every  sub- 
ject except  what  is  imderstood  in  our  universities  by 
classics  and  mathematics — have  had  sentence  of  ban- 
ishment passed  upon  them  in  the  form  of  new  com- 
pulsory examinations,  under  the  management  of  col- 
lege tutors,  the  Oxford  plan  of  awarding  honours  to 
classical  and  mathematical  attainments  alone  being 
adhered  to.  The  professors  of  chemistry  and  anatomy, 
who  had  formerly  considerable  classes,  liave  only  mus- 
tered six  or  seven  pupils,  although  still  compelled  to 
give  courses  of  fifty  lectures  each.  The  chairs  of  Mo- 
dern History,  and  of  the  application  of  Machinery  to 
the  Arts,  once  numbering  audiences  of  several  hun- 
dreds, have  been  in  like  manner  deserted.  Yet  dis- 
pensations are  rarely  granted  for  the  discontinuance 
of  useless  duties,  even  when  only  two  pupils  present 
themselves. 


'lIAP.  XIII. 

Univoi- 
ftiulcnts 
5  at  Ox- 
matiic- 
Roiiian 
England 
,  tliongh 
ting  the 
3  of  very 
-)rofe>sors 
hcst  ma- 
icek  and 
tc  Latin 
Chancel- 


CllAP.  XIII.        ABANDONED    AT    CAMDRIDGE. 


24  L 


Moreover,  here,  as  at  Oxford,  it  is  not  uncommon  to 
give  such  cliairs  as  Mathematics,  Natural  Pliiiosophy, 
Chemistry,  Botany,  Astronomy,  Geology,  Mineralogy, 
and  others,  to  clergymen,  who  combine  them  with  cler- 
ical duties,  or  throw  them  up  when  they  obtain  prefer- 
ment, and  who,  however  eminent,  owing,  as  they  must 
do,  a  mixed  allegiance,  partly  to  their  ecclesiastical  or- 
der, and  partly  to  the  professorial  body,  cannot  stand 
up  with  heart  and  courage  in  defence  of  the  public,  as 
opposed  to  the  clerical  and  collegiate,  interests. 

Dr.  Whewell,  now  Master  of  Trinity,  after  many 
years'  experience  as  a  tutor  at  Cambridge,  published, 
in  1837,  his  views  on  the  plan  of  education  adopted 
in  the  English  universities.  His  arguments  in  favour 
of  employing  the  learned  languages  as  a  main  in- 
strument of  education  are  unanswerable,  and  enforced 
with  great  eloquence  and  power.  "In  what  a  condi- 
tion should  we  be,"  he  observes,  "if  our  connection 
with  the  past  were  snapped — if  Greek  and  Latin  were 
forgotten?"*  No  less  cogent  are  his  reasons  for  cwlti- 
vating  mathematics  as  a  means  of  strengthening  the 
reasoning  powers  and  disciplining  the  mind.  But  when 
we  come  to  that  part  of  his  treatise  in  which  he  attempts 
to  defend  the  exclusive  monopoly  enjoyed  by  these 
subjects  in  the  education  of  young  men  at  Oxford  and 
Cambridge,  from  the  ages  of  eighteen  to  twenty-two, 
including  a  period  at  the  end  of  which  the  majority  of 
them  quit  college  altogether,  his  commendations  of  the 
system  appear  to  me  rather  to  resemble  the  pleadings 
of  an  advocate,  than  those  enlightened  and  philosophical 
views  which  characterise  his  works  in  general.  Obe- 
dience and  deference  to  authority  arc  held  forth  as  if 

*  Principles  of  Univereitv  Education,  London,  1837,  ch.  i.  sect.  4. 

21 


242 


ADVOCACV    OF   THE 


Chap.  xiii. 


they  were  the  cliief  and  almost  sole  moral  virtues  to  bo 
instilled  into  the  minds  of  young  academicians.  The 
students  are  treated  more  as  boys  and  children  than  as 
men  on  the  very  point  of  entering  on  their  several 
duties  in  life,  and  who  ought,  without  loss  of  time, 
to  be  acquiring  habits  of  thinking  and  judging  for 
themselves. 

"  Mathematical  doctrines  are  fixed  and  permanent," 
says  the  historian  of  the  Inductive  Sciences,  of  whose 
remarks  on  this  subject  I  shall  give  a  brief  abstract  in 
his  own  words.  "  The  old  truths  will  always  be  true. 
In  philosophical  doctrines  a  constant  change  is  going 
on.  The  old  system  is  refuted,  and  a  new  one  is  erected. 
There  is  nothing  old,  nothing  stable.  The  student 
cannot  but  suspect  that  his  teacher  and  his  teacher's 
creed  are  but  for  a  day.  The  mind  of  a  young  man 
employed  in  attending  to  teachers  of  this  kind  must 
fail  to  acquire  any  steady  conviction  of  the  immutable 
and  fixed  nature  of  truth.  He  becomes  a  restless 
speculator,  criticising  what  has  already  been  done  in 
philosophy,  attempting  to  guess  what  will  be  the  next 
step.  He  is  placed  in  the  condition  of  a  critic  instead 
of  a  pupil." — "  In  mathematics,  the  teacher  is  usually 
the  superior  of  his  scholar,  who  entertains  a  docile  and 
confiding  disposition  towards  his  instructor.  He  cannot 
give  or  refuse  his  assent  when  a  system  is  proposed  to 
him,  nor  feel  in  the  situation  of  an  equal  and  a  judge. 
The  subjects  suitable  for  university  teaching  are  the 
undoubted  truths  of  mathematics,  and  works  of  un- 
questioned excellence,  such  as  the  best  classical  authors. 
When  engaged  in  these,  the  student  respects  his 
instructor ;  they  are  the  fit  subjects  of  college  lec- 
tures.   A  spirit  of  criticism  is  awakened  by  the  study 


V.  XIII. 


Chap.  xiii. 


CAMDniDGE    SYSTKM. 


243 


to  be 

The 
lanas 
everal 

time, 
iig  for 

inent," 
whose 
ract  in 
)e  true. 
s  going 
erected, 
student 
eacher'a 
ng  man 
id  must 
mutable 
restless 
lone  in 
le  next 
instead 
usually 
Icile  and 
cannot 
(osed  to 
judge, 
are  the 
of  un- 
,uthors. 
ids  his 
sre  lee- 
le  study 


of  philosophy,  which  in  a  fit  subject  of  professorial 
lectures."* 

In  commenting  on  the  above  passages,  I  cannot 
refrain  from  remarking,  that  if  the  teacher  of  philosophy 
cannot  command  the  resj)ect  of  his  pupils,  he  must  be 
ill-qualified  for  his  post.  No  one  who  is  master  of  his 
favourite  science  will  fail  to  inspire  the  minds  of  his 
more  intellectual  scholars  with  a  love  of  what  he 
teaches,  and  a  regard  and  admiration  for  their  instruc- 
tor. "  Addicti  jurare  in  verba  magistri,"  they  will  be 
only  too  prone  to  prefer  Plato  to  truth,  and  defend  the 
professor's  theory,  even  when  he  himself  has  seen 
reason  to  modify  it  in  accordance  with  new  facts  and 


reasonings. 


When  we  inquire  by  what  kind  of  training  young 
men  can  best  be  prepared,  before  leaving  the  university, 
to  enter  upon  the  study  or  practice  of  their  professions, 
whether  as  lawyers,  physicians,  clergymen,  schoolmas. 
ters,  tutors,  or  legislators,  can  we  assent  to  the  notion 
that,  by  confining  instruction  to  pure  mathematics,  or 
the  classical  writers,  more  especially  if  the  latter  are 
not  treated  in  a  critical  spirit,  we  shall  accomplish  this 
end?  Do  not  these  belong  precisely  to  the  class  of 
subjects  in  which  there  is  least  danger  of  the  student's 
going  wrong,  even  if  he  engages  in  them  at  home  and 
alone  ?  Should  it  not  be  one  of  our  chief  objects  to 
prepare  him  to  form  sound  opinions  in  matters  con- 
nected with  moral,  political,  or  physical  science  ?  Here, 
indeed,  he  needs  the  aid  of  a  trustworthy  guide  and 
director,  who  shall  teach  him  to  weigh  evidence,  point 
out  to  him  the  steps  by  which  truth  has  been  gradually 
attained  in  the  inductive  philosophy,  the  caution  to  be 
*  University  Education,  pp.  46 — 53. 


/^ 


244 


KNdl.ISII    UNIVKRSITV    SYSSTEM.      CiiaP.  XIII. 


used  in  collcctinn^  facts  atul  drawing"  conrlusionH,  the 
prejudices  which  arc  hostile  to  a  fair  inquiry,  and 
who,  while  his  pupil  is  interested  in  the  works  of  the 
ancients,  shall  remind  him  that,  as  knowledi^c  is  pro- 
gressive, he  must  avail  himself  of  the  latest  actpiisitions 
of  his  own  age,  in  order  to  attain  views  more  compre- 
hensive and  correct  than  those  enjoyed  even  hy  prede- 
cessors of  far  superior  capacity  and  genius. 

It  may  appear  strange,  that  while  such  great  sacri- 
fices of  time  are  made  in  England  to  the  exclusive 
cultivation  of  classics,  a  larger  proportion  of  tlie  best 
modern  editions  of  Greek  and  Latin  are  not  the  fruit  of 
British  scholarship.  The  cause,  however,  is  easily  ex- 
plained. The  highest  excellence  in  literature  or  in 
science  can  only  residt  from  a  life  perseveringly  devoted 
to  one  department.  Such  unity  of  purj)ose  and  con- 
centration of  power  is  wholly  inconsistent  with  our 
academical  machinery  of  tuition. 

The  panegyrists,  indeed,  of  the  modern  university 
system  in  England,  seem  never  to  admit  candidly  this 
plain  truth,  that  the  colleges  have  no  alternative  in  re- 
gard to  the  course  of  study  open  to  them.  Take  any 
nourishing  university  in  Great  Britain  or  on  the  Conti- 
nent, Berlin,  for  example,  or  Bonn,  or  Edinburgh, 
where  a  wide  range  of  sciences  are  taught.  Let  the 
students  be  divided  into  fifteen  or  more  sections,  with- 
out any  classification  in  reference  to  their  age,  acquire- 
ments, talents,  tastes,  or  future  prospects.  Assign  to 
each  section  a  separate  set  of  teachers,  chiefly  clerical, 
and  looking  forward  to  preferment  in  the  Church  and 
public  schools,  and  from  them  select  all  your  public  ex- 
aminers. What  must  be  the  result  ?  The  immediate 
abandonment  of  three  fourths  of  the 


sciences  now 


AP.  XIII. 

IS,  the 
^,  and 
of  the 
is  pro- 
isitions 
;omi)re- 
'  pretlc- 

it  sacri- 
^clusive 
he  best 
5  fruit  of 
isily  ex- 
■e  or  in 
devoted 
ind  con- 
nih  our 


Chap.  Xlir.      ENOLISH    UNtVEUSITY    SYSTEM. 


245 


taught,  while  tliosc  retained  will  belong  of  necessity  to 
the  loss  progressive  branches  of  human  knowleilgo. 
Under  conditions  so  singular  as  those  now  iniiwscd  on 
Oxford  and  Cambridge,  I  am  ready  to  join  their  warm- 
est eulogists,  and  to  contend  that  their  plan  of  education 
is  the  best. 

In  the  treatise  on  the  universities,  before  alluded  to, 
there  are  hints  thrown  out  on  the  "  ignoble  inlluenro 
of  compulsory  examinations,  which  act  on  the  fears 
rather  than  on  the  hopes  of  young  men,"  and  which 
have  "drawn  off  many  students  from  professorial  lec- 
tures ;"  on  "  examiners  not  habitually  pursuing  partic- 
ular studies,  and  whose  knowledge,  therefore,  has  no 
fulness,  richness,  deptli,  or  variety ;"  also  on  private 
tutors  having  no  ostensible  and  responsible  situation  in 
the  university,  and  the  tendency  of  modern  changes  to 
throw  the  whole  academical  education  into  their  hands 
and  those  of  the  public  examiners  (ibid.  ch.  ii.) ;  which 
may  lead  us  to  infer  that  the  optimism  of  the  Master 
of  Trinity  is  not  of  that  uncompromising  kind  which 
should  make  us  despair  of  his  co-operation  in  all  future 
academical  reforms. 

In  considering  the  present  state  of  feeling  towards 
science  and  its  cultivators  in  England,  I  cannot  refrain 
from  citing  a  passage  (with  the  leave  of  both  the  cor- 
respondents) from  a  letter  dated  February,  1845,  ad- 
dressed by  Professor  Liebig  to  Mr.  Faraday  : — 

"  What  struck  me  most  in  England  was  the  percep- 
tion that  only  those  works  that  have  a  practical  ten- 
dency awake  attention,  and  command  respect,  while 
the  purely  scientific,  which  possess  far  greater  merit,  are 
ahnost  unknown.  And  yet  the  latter  are  the  proper 
and  true  source  from  which  the  others  flow.     Practice 

21* 


1 

t 

t 

h 

1            '^ 

Ti 

I'              i 

1 

kl. 

1 

246 


UTILITARIAN    SPIRIT. 


ClIAP.  XIII. 


alone  can  never  lead  to  the  discovery  of  a  truth  or  a 
principle.  In  Germany,  it  is  quite  the  contrary.  Here, 
in  the  eyes  of  scientific  men,  no  value,  or  at  least  but  a 
trifling  one,  is  placed  on  the  practical  results.  The 
enrichment  of  science  is  alone  considered  worthy  of  at- 
tention. I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  this  is  better ;  for 
both  nations  the  golden  medium  would  certainly  be  a 
real  good  fortune." 

What  I  have  said  of  the  method  and  course  of  in- 
struction now  pursued  in  our  principal  universities  will, 
I  think,  explain  in  no  small  degree  the  prevalence  of 
the  utilitarian  spirit,  so  correctly  pointed  out  by  this  dis- 
tinguished foreigner,  and  the  want  of  a  due  apprecia- 
tion of  the  higher  and  more  diflicult  departments  of 
philosophical  research.  From  what  source  is  the  public 
at  large,  whether  belonging  to  the  upper  or  middle 
classes,  to  imbibe  a  respect  and  veneration  for  those 
who  are  engrossed  in  the  pursuit  of  philosophical  truth, 
and  who  live  excluded  from  active  life,  if  they  who 
direct  university  education  do  not  foster,  nay,  if  they 
positively  discovuage,  the  teaching  of  the  progressive 
sciences?  How  can  the  multitude  learn,  that,  for  one 
mind  willing  or  capable  of  patiently  working  out  and 
discovering  a  new  truth  or  principle,  there  are  hundreds 
who  can  apply  to  practice  these  principles,  when  once 
ascertained?  Nothing  can  be  more  short-sighted, 
therefore,  even  on  purely  utilitarian  grounds,  than  the 
usual  policy  of  the  herd  of  cut  bono  philosophers,  who 
award  higher  honours  and  ctioluments  to  the  applica- 
tion than  to  the  discovery  of  scientific  principles. 

It  is  truly  fortunate  that,  in  proportion  as  Oxford  and 
Cambridge  have  withdrawn  their  countenance  more 
and  more  from  studies  connected  with  physical  science 


i 


lAP.  xni. 


CiMr.  XIII. 


ACADEMICAL    REFORM. 


247 


h  or  a 

Here, 

tbuta 

The 

y  of  al- 
ter;  for 
ily  be  a 

e  of  in- 
ies  will, 
lence  of 
this  dis- 
ipprecia- 
nents  of 
he  public 
r  middle 
for  those 
|cal  truth, 
^hey  who 
,  if  they 
ogrcssive 
It,  for  one 
out  and 
[hundreds 
hen  once 
[t-sighted, 
than  the 
[lers,  who 
applica- 

;S. 

ford  and 
ice  more 
I  science 


ft 


and  natural  history,  the  wants  of  a  high  state  of  civil- 
ization, and  the  spirit  of  the  age,  have  afforded  to  them 
in  England  an  annually  increasing  patronage.  It  ia 
felt  that  astronomy  is  indispensable  to  navigation, 
chemistry  to  agriculture  and  various  arts,  geology  to 
mining,  botany  to  medicine,  and  so  of  other  depart- 
ments. If  the  practical  connection  of  any  branch  of 
science  be  not  obvious,  as  in  the  cas'o  of  zoology,  scarce- 
ly any  encoiu'agement  is  given  to  ',♦,  in  any  English 
place  of  education  ;  but  even  here,  fortunatelj^,  the 
British  Museum  and  the  College  of  Surgeons,  by  their 
extensive  collections,  step  in,  and  in  «oine  degree  supply 
the  deficiency. 

After  the  rejection  at  Oxford  of  the  nioderate  meas- 
ure of  reform  proposed  in  1839,  for  combining  together 
the  professorial  and  tutorial  systems,  we  can  scarcely 
hope  that  any  movement  from  within  will  effect  the 
changes  so  loudly  called  for.  Time  will,  year  after 
year,  remove  the  older  members  of  Convocation,  who 
are  favourable  to  more  enlarged  views,  and  will  replace 
them,  it  must  be  feared,  by  the  avowed  partizans  of  the 
narrower  system  of  study,  adopted  in  more  modern 
times,  and  under  which  they  have  been  brought  up. 
Appeal  under  such  circumstances  must  therefore  be 
made  to  an  external  authority.  A  royal  commission 
like  those  which  have  more  than  once  visited  of  late 
years  the  universities  of  Scotland,  might  prove  a  sufli- 
cient  counterpoise  to  the  power  and  vis  itici'ticB  of  forty 
learned  corporations.  They  might  suggest  such  reme- 
dies as  the  licensing  of  new  Halls,  the  removal  of  tests 
on  matriculation,  the  awarding  of  honorary  distinctions 
for  proficiency  in  the  subjects  of  the  professorial  lectures, 
and  many  others,  which  would  doubtless  be  welcomed 


248 


ACADEMICAL    REFORM. 


Chap.  xiii. 


by  the  more  enlightened  members  of  Convocation. 
Fortunately,  no  violent  innovations  are  called  for,  no 
new  endowments,  or  grants  of  money.  The  commis- 
sioners would  have  to  recommend  the  renovation  of 
what  has  fallen  into  disuse — the  improvement  of  the 
old  rather  than  the  introduction  of  new  and  experimen- 
tal systems  ;  they  would  have  to  give  force  to  existing 
academical  statutes,  now  inoperative,  rather  than  to 
enact  new  laws.  They  might  midertakc  university 
reform  in  the  temper  recommended  by  Dr.  WhewcU 
(p.  138.),  "  bringing  to  the  task  a  spirit,  not  of  hatred, 
but  of  reverence  for  the  past,  not  of  contempt,  but  of 
gratitude  towards  our  predecessors."  No  new  foun- 
tains of  knowledge  are  to  be  sought  for  m  the  depths 
of  the  earth  ;  they  are  already  at  the  surface,  read}^, 
on  the  removal  of  impediments,  to  overflow  and  fertil- 
ize the  soil.  When  Lord  Hastings  conquered  Delhi 
in  1817,  he  found  an  extensive  wilderness  near  that 
city,  sterile,  and  parched  up  by  the  sun'b  heat,  which 
had  once  been  cultivated  and  populous  ;  for  in  ancient 
times  it  had  been  irrigated  by  canals  which  brought 
the  waters  of  the  Jumna  from  a  distance  of  250  miles. 
The  empire  which  had  left  these  monuments  of  its  an- 
cient grandeur  had  long  passed  away,  and  having  fall- 
en to  pieces,  had  formed  a  multitude  of  smaller  king- 
doms, each  governed  by  feebler  rulers.  In  a  few  years, 
by  the  aid  of  several  thousand  labourers,  directed  by 
skilful  engineers,  these  ancient  watercourses  were  re- 
paired. They  had  been  dry  for  two  centuries  and  a 
half;  and  on  the  day  appointed  for  the  copious  streams 
to  flow  once  more  through  the  streets  of  the  ancient 
metropolis,  the  Hindoo  priests  went  forth  in  solenm 
procession,  while  troops  of  virgins  threw  garlands  of 


> 


Chap.  xm. 


EXCLUSIVE    SYSTEM. 


^49 


flowers  into  the  waters  i.  H 
^%  of  national  jubileind,';  '^''"'^^'-  ^^  ^^^^^  a 
f  a  foreign  pou'er  ad  1.  !  w"^"^ ^'  '''  ^^^  '^-"d 
their  forefathers  '"'"^^  *^  *^^«»^  ^he  works  of 

O-'cfoid  annually  ,-efuL,n;',  '  '"  °^'=*'win„  . 

"ore  cannot  be!aoc„ Z^  '"''"-"'"den.,  becanfe 

the  university?  Have  Ov^^i  f"  ""'^ '"^  ^"W  of 
pace,  since  the  con^^Lf^tf  o^^th  """''"""'"  '^'=n' 
>ml.  Ihe  growth  of  the  Znh,  '"'''"'  ""'"'Y, 

"education,  in  .hefiffifpS  T""'  -"  «'e 
W  been  added  to  our  nonnlnT  „  "'''">'  '"''«<»»' 
«f  necessity,  iuereased'lrn  I'  "''"^'-y'-vo, 
''"^hoF  Imve  more  gen^ll?"  '  ?''  "'^  E„gh>,l, 
g.ees  before  ordination  Ti.T""'f  "''^''"''^^  •>•'- 
adorable  augmentation  of  1,,^"!  '"  """''"'  "  ^on- 
notoriou.  that  the  e.^„t.:'^^"''-  ,.«"'  ^  i'  no. 

«clus,o„  of  branches  of  instLf'    "^ ''"''«'  ""^  "'« 
future  professions  and  indW^  7  '°""'"='<"'  '"">  "'^ 
have  Jcept  down  the  „„i  J    T'.  "'  ^'""e"'^, 
^»™  of  ,!>„  aristocracy, ""rfttlr''''"''^'™^  '     ^he 
"ay  eke  out  their  academ  L  ^"""'"'  '''">'  ''^ P«>r, 

»"<i  other  e„down,en  s    c™    "T';"'''  '^oia^Wps 
Mdergraduates.     The  cnl^  '  "'"  '»a»^  "f  'he 

«P'y  .he  number  of''  e, "^.s  I  "?  "^*^  '»  "'"- 
"any  as  t)-ey  can  teach.'^The' a  aT      ™,'"''^^''^='^ 
he  cost  of  board  and  lodgin.  «„  v'"'  ^'''''  a-" 
.'he  «yle  of  living  is  so  u'rZl  rV"''"""""' '  '''« 
>"eomes  feel  themselves  haft  ™''  "•'*  ™'all 

objection  has  operated  far  nil     '  '^'1'°"  ^  ""''  «hi. 

ohecic  the  natural  increa«   ?X  ul  ^^  ^'?'™^  '^'^  "> 

'  "le  universities. 


H 


\\ 


250 


EXCLUSIVE    ACADEMICAL 


Chap.  xiii. 


i 


Wliy,  it  may  be  asked,  should  we  crowd  all  the 
Biitisli  youth  into  two  ancient  seats  of  learning  ?  Why 
not  promote  the  growth  of  other  institutions  in  London, 
Durham,  Scotland,  Wales,  and  Ireland?  That  such 
competition,  should  be  encouraged,  I  fully  admit ;  but  it 
will  still  be  desirable  that  Oxford  and  Cambridge  sliould 
expand  freely,  and  that  they  should  cease  to  serve  as 
models  of  an  exclusive  and  sectarian  principle.  Before 
the  Reformation  their  spirit  was  catholic  and  national : 
since  that  period,  they  have  dwindled,  not  into  theo- 
logical seminaries,  for  they  have  never  in  practice 
afforded  a  complete  professional  course  for  divinity  stu- 
dents, but  into  places  for  educating  the  clergy  of  the 
Established  Church,  and  the  aristocratic  portion  of  the 
laity  professing  the  same  form  of  Christianity.  Such 
a  system,  coupled  with  the  abandonment  of  professional 
studies  in  general,  tends  to  dissever  throughout  the 
country  men  of  diiTerent  callings,  creeds,  and  profes- 
sions. It  has  a  dissociating  influence.  It  separates 
during  the  period  Oi  youth  the  nobility  and  gentry  from 
the  higher  jjortion  of  the  middle  classes,  the  barrister 
from  the  attorney,  the  physician  from  the  surgeon,  the 
legislators  and  lawyers  of  England  from  those  civilians 
to  whom  the  government  of  eighty  millions  in  India  is 
to  be  consigned,  tiie  members  of  the  Anglican  church 
from  the  Romanists  of  Stonyhurst  or  the  Dissenters  of 
Hackney,  the  civil  engineers  of  Putney  from  the  medi- 
cal students  of  London.  It  disunites  these  and  other 
sections  of  the  same  community,  and  throws  them  into 
antagonist  masses,  each  keeping  aloof  from  the  other 
in  cold  and  jealous  seclusion,  each  cherishing  sectarian 
or  party  animosities,  or  professional  and  social  prejudices. 
Complaints  arc  often  heard,  and  not  without  reason,  of 


1 


M 


'n\F.  XIII. 

all  the 
?  Why 
London, 
lut  such 
L ;  but  it 
;e  should 
serve  as 
Before 
lational : 
ito  theo- 
practice 
inity  stu- 
ry  of  the 
Dn  of  the 
y.     Such 
ofcssional 
•hout  the 
id  profes- 
separates 
iitry  from 
barrister 
con,  the 
civilians 
India  is 
church 
icnters  of 
le  medi- 
Ind  other 
hem  into 
Ihe  other 
lectarian 
[ejudiccs. 
;ason,  of 


1 


Chap.  xiii. 


SYSTEM    OF    ENGLAND. 


251 


the  harsh  outlines  that  often  separate  the  dinbrcnt 
grades  of  society  in  this  country.  It  is  in  the  season 
of  youth,  and  when  men  are  engaged  in  the  common 
pursuit  of  knowledge,— especially  if  allowed  as  far  us 
possible  to  follow  the  bent  of  their  own  tastes  and 
genius, — that  friendships  might  easily  be  formed  tending 
to  soften  these  hard  outlines.  At  college,  they  would 
be  brought  together  on  neutral,  and  usually  on  friendly 
ground,  where  kindly  feelings  and  sympathies  would 
spring  up  spontaneously,  and  would  be  cherished  in 
after-life  by  congenial  souls,  however  distant  the  station, 
or  distinct  the  religious  opinions  or  professional  employ- 
ments of  the  former  fellow-students.* 

*  While  these  sheets  were  passing  through  the  press,  an  important 
discussion  took  place  in  the  House  of  Commons,  in  conseq^^ince  of  a 
motion  made  April  10th,  1845,  by  Mr.  Christie,  M.  P.  for  Weymouth, 
for  a  royal  commission  of  enquiry  into  the  state  of  education  in  tlio 
English  universities.  I  have  added  and  altered  nothing  since  reading 
this  debate,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  while  there  is  a  coincidence  in 
some  of  my  views  with  those  so  ably  advocated  by  many  of  the  par- 
liamentary speakers,  there  are  other  grounds  taken  up  by  me  to  whi'-h 
they  have  not  alluded. 


END  OP  THE  FIRST  VOLUME. 


